Giovanni Pernice teams up with Anton Du Beke to thank fans in defiant message amid Strictly exit
Giovanni Pernice has sent a message out to his fans after leaving Strictly Come Dancing, thanking the 'full house' who came to watch him and Anton Du Beke perform in the latest stop on their tour.
The 33 year old dancer has faced a controversial past few months after actress Amanda Abbington, who was his celebrity partner on Strictly Come Dancing last year, left the show early and later claimed she suffered from PTSD. The BBC reportedly launched an internal investigation after receiving complaints from his previous celebrity dance partners and Giovanni denied any claims of "abusive or threatening behaviour".
Despite leaving the show earlier this month, Giovanni has continued on his dance tour with co-star Anton Du Beke - and the pair had a message for fans after their performance in Hayes on Friday night.
"So we are in Hayes tonight. Opening night!" Giovanni said to camera. "It's going very well so far. So far, so good. But it feels like we are performing for ourselves."
Anton added: "I thought we'd have a full house." Giovanni then jokingly added: "But nobody came to watch the show."
The duo then brought the house lights up to show that they did in fact have a full house that night, with the audience filled to capacity. They then turned back to camera and said: "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Earlier this month, Giovanni broke his silence on social media after the BBC announced the professional dancer line-up for its 2024 series - and his name was missing. After the news broke of his harsh exit from the show, Giovanni shared a video on his Instagram Stories of him dancing at Ballando UK.
A number of Strictly Come Dancing cast members will be returning to the show later this year, including Dianne Buswell, Nadiya Bychkova, Graziano Di Prima, Amy Dowden, Karen Hauer, Katya Jones, Neil Jones and Nikita Kuzmin. They'll be joining Gorka Marquez, Luba Mushtuk, Jowita Przystal, Johannes Radebe, Kai Widdrington, Nancy Xu, Carlos Gu, Lauren Oakley, Michelle Tsiakkas and Vito Coppola in the cast.
While Anton was once Strictly's longest-serving professional dancer, he is now a judge after replacing Bruno Tonioli on a permanent basis.
Earlier this year, Giovanni dismissed any claims of "abusive or threatening behaviour" and vowed to "clear [his] name". He said: "Those who have followed my journey on Strictly Come Dancing over the last decade will know that I am passionate and competitive. No-one is more ambitious for my dance partners than me.
"I have always strived to help them be the very best dancers they can be. This has always come from a place of love and wanting to win - for me and my dance partners. Thank you all once again for your continued love and support!"
