Laura Whitmore has alleged that the BBC tried to “gaslight” her when she tried to complain about her time on Strictly Come Dancing.
The former Love Island host competed on Strictly back in 2016, where she was paired up with the professional dancer Giovanni Pernice.
In the years since, Laura has made no secret of the fact she found her time on Strictly difficult, writing on HuffPost UK two years later: “I’m still not ready to talk in depth about my experience on the show […] but before it even began, I was thrown into the lion’s den and into the middle of someone’s break-up that had nothing to do with me. Once again, I was a ‘rumoured love interest’.
“I was placed with a dance partner I was extremely uncomfortable with – and in the end I felt broken. I cried every day. And I really was broken, both mentally and physically, by the end.”
With Strictly currently under the microscope amid a BBC investigation sparked by complaints made by a number of former complaints, Laura spoke out last week about “inappropriate behaviour” she experienced during her time on the show.
In an interview with The Irish Times (as reported on by Deadline), Laura claimed that behaviour she “tried to speak about eight years ago” was “all coming out now”.
She added that either her concerns were not listened to, or she was “gaslit to make it seem normalised”.
The BBC had no comment when contacted by HuffPost UK.
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While Giovanni is yet to address any of the specific allegations made about his conduct behind the scenes of Strictly, he has long refuted “any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour”.
“I am cooperating fully with the ongoing BBC investigation, which will determine the truth. As requested, I have stayed silent, but I am looking forward to the conclusion of the investigation and ultimately clearing my name and establishing the truth,” he wrote on Instagram back in June.
This year’s series of Strictly is expected to get underway next month, with the BBC introducing new measures intended to “strengthen welfare and support” behind the scenes.
