Strictly Come Dancing legend breaks silence on Giovanni Pernice fallout saying 'it's sad for everybody'

Gorka Marquez has opened up on Giovanni Pernice's exit from the much-loved show Strictly Come Dancing, revealing that his exit is "sad for everybody" in the cast. Gorka joined his co-star Karen Hauer on the Good Morning Britain sofa on Tuesday (June 25) to chat about the upcoming series of the show and it wasn't long before host Susanna Reid asked about Giovanni's exit.

Giovanni was the longest-serving male professional on the show before he quit earlier this summer, which came after his celebrity partner Amanda Abbington shared that she had been diagnosed with PTSD from the show. The Italian star later denied "any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour", adding: "I look forward to clearing my name."

During the chat on Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, Susanna Reid probed Gorka about Giovanni's recent departure from Strictly. "Can I just ask about Gio - because you're now the longest-running dancer because Gio is not going to be involved in this series," she said. "What is that like for the Strictly family when someone of that level leaves?"

Gorka responded: "It's like when Aljaž [Škorjanec] leaves or Oti [Mabuse] leaves, or when Anton [Du Beke] decides to go to the judge role. Everyone is a big part of the show when someone decides to leave or change their careers, it's sad for everybody."

Co-host Adil Ray couldn't resist asking if Gorka still maintains a line of communication with his former co-star. Answering honestly, Gorka admitted: "Sometimes we speak, he's busy, I'm busy. He's on tour at the minute with Anton."

Last week, Amanda Abbington reportedly called the police after being flooded with death threats from online trolls. “Amanda has been left petrified and feeling very vulnerable in public,” a source told The Sun. “She has been worried about leaving the house to do simple errands like walking the dog or picking up groceries.

“At one point she was struggling to field the hundreds of messages from Giovanni supporters saying nasty things and threatening her safety.”

Meanwhile, Giovanni is reportedly in 'advanced talks' to join the Italian version of Strictly Come Dancing. A source told The Mail : "Giovanni is in advanced talks to join the Italian version of Strictly, Dancing with the Stars. Bosses are really keen to sign him as a judge given his fame and status in the UK but are also open to the dancer performing as a professional, if he still wants to compete.

"All he wants is a fresh start and to join Dancing with the Stars in Italy will certainly give him the new chapter he's been hoping for."

Good Morning Britain airs weekdays from 6am on ITV1 and ITVX.