Janette Manrara defends Strictly hosts' decision not to address show's scandal
Janette Manrara has spoken out against the idea that she and fellow Strictly Come Dancing presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman should bring up the recent issues involving Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima on the live shows.
While appearing on a podcast, Janette, who hosts the spin-off show Strictly: It Takes Two, expressed that while she supports individuals who have had negative experiences to voice their concerns and find support, she doesn't think the situation requires mention during the live broadcasts.
As Strictly gears up for its milestone 20th series, it has been hit with accusations of inappropriate conduct concerning Giovanni and Graziano, both of whom have left the programme.
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Accusations have surfaced suggesting Giovanni was "cruel" and "abusive" towards his star partner Amanda Abbington, resulting in her departure from last year's competition at week five. Giovanni vehemently denies these claims and is eagerly awaiting the opportunity to clear his name following the results of the internal investigation currently in progress.
Meanwhile, Graziano made headlines after allegations emerged that he kicked and spat at his former dance partner Zara McDermott. He acknowledged the kicking incident with an apology but firmly refuted any spitting, reports the Express.
Addressing the scandals, podcasters Jane Garvey and Fi Glover contended that viewers deserve to get an explanation of what transpired through the series' hosts, Tess and Claudia.
However, Janette, 40, strongly expressed her opinion: "I disagree, I think our jobs as hosts on the show, mine on It Takes Two and for Tess and Claudia on Strictly Come Dancing is to solely celebrate the people that are there now, their experience and talk about what they are going through, celebrate the pro dancers and the group numbers that they are doing now and focus on moving forward.
"The only thing I will say is for example, Aljaz [Skorjanec] and his partner on my couch, how was your week? Did you enjoy it? Was it tough? Was it not tough? Tell me about it, how do you feel when the judges made those comments? That is my job and that is my priority to focus on that couple and their experience."
Janette also mentioned that anything concerning the allegations is "above" her pay grade and implied that bringing the topic into the new series wouldn't be fair to the current participants.
Despite the hosts pushing further on addressing the concerns to maintain authenticity with viewers, Janette firmly rebutted: "But that's not this year, there's a whole new cast of people.
"Again that's above my pay grade, I don't pick the scripts, I don't decide what happens or doesn't happen on the show but, in my personal opinion, I don't think it will be fair to the new contestants to bring up that negativity because they are here to have a positive experience."
In an additional update, this year's lineup includes six female celebrities dancing against nine male stars.
While some might think this is due to recent controversies, Janette clarified that an odd number of contestants has occurred before.
The 15 celebs battling it out for the Glitterball trophy include opera sensation Wynne Evans, singer and actress Toyah Willcox, TV's favourite doctor Punam Krishan, funnyman Chris McCausland, JLS heartthrob JB Gill, TOWIE's Pete Wicks and Love Island beauty Tasha Ghouri.