BBC boss says sorry over Strictly complaints
The BBC’s director general has apologised to Strictly Come Dancing contestants after complaints of abusive behaviour on the show.
Tim Davie said he was “disappointed” to hear that several celebrities had complained about how their dance partners treated them in rehearsals.
The BBC One show’s professionals should not cross the line between being competitive and “unacceptable behaviour”, he warned – but did confirm the show would return.
“There will be a degree of competitiveness and will to do well, but there are limits and the line should never be crossed,” he said.
“We never tolerate unacceptable behaviour of any kind.”
Strictly professionals Graziano Di Prima and Giovanni Pernice have both left the show after allegations about their behaviour in training.
Pernice has denied “any accusations of abusive or threatening behaviour”.
Di Prima’s spokesman has admitted the dancer kicked partner Zara McDermott in rehearsal last year. Di Prima has said he deeply regrets “the events that led to my departure from Strictly”, and that his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected my training regime”.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, Mr Davie said he was “very sorry that anyone has had an experience that hasn’t been wholly positive”.
“That’s something we do need to reflect on and I’m sorry about that,” he added.
“There are clearly learnings specifically about oversight in the training rooms that we had needed to address.”
With the “benefit of hindsight, you think could we have done more?” he added.
Mr Davie confirmed the show will return as planned later this year, despite its problems.
Last week, the BBC announced new measures including putting a member of Strictly production staff in all rehearsals to observe behaviour.
There will also be enhanced training and two new dedicated welfare producers – one for the celebrity contestants and the other for the professional dancers.
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Launching the BBC’s annual report, the director general described Strictly as “a wonderful show that brings a lot of joy to a lot of people, and has done so for 20 years, to both those involved with the show itself and to millions of people at home”.
“Hundreds of people – be they pros, contestants or crew – have been part of it and had a brilliant experience.
“At the same time, if someone feels there was something wrong or they want to talk about their experience, then of course we want them to raise that with us.
“Be in no doubt we will take it seriously, listen, and deal with it as appropriate. And while I’m not going to talk about individuals, you can see evidence of that in recent weeks.
“So I hope that anyone who does want to talk to us feels they can.”
The programme’s support protocols and structures would be kept “under review”, he said.
This year’s celebrity participants are expected to be revealed in August.
“We have a brilliant line-up this year and are keen to get going,” he added.
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The complaints were first raised by Sherlock actress Amanda Abbington, who was paired with Pernice last year but pulled out part-way through the series.
She has since accused him of being “unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean”. Legal firm Carter Ruck has said it has contacted the BBC regarding “numerous serious complaints” about Pernice’s alleged behaviour.
He denies those claims, saying he was “surprised” by the allegations, and that “totally untrue” stories appear in the media about him every week.
Meanwhile, following the news that Di Prima had left this year’s line-up, his last partner Zara McDermott said she was involved in multiple incidents in the training room, which she now finds “incredibly distressing” to watch back.
Di Prima’s spokesperson said the kick was a single incident, adding: “He knows he’s made a mistake. He apologised at the time.”
Paralympian Will Bayley is among the other celebrities who have spoken out about their experiences on the show.
The table tennis player praised his dance partner Janette Manrara for being “incredibly supportive” and “ultra professional”.
But he said a serious injury that forced him to pull out of the show in 2019 “could have been avoided”, and the BBC made him feel like he was “making a mountain out of a molehill” when he later complained.
Bayley, who was born with the joint condition arthrogryposis and has severe arthritis, tore his anterior cruciate ligament in his knee while jumping off a table during rehearsals.
He told BBC Radio 5 Live on Tuesday he was “never going to get over” the injury.
After it happened, he wrote to the BBC to complain and suggest more support for disabled contestants, but said he found the reply “really depressing”.
“It was like, ‘We’ve done everything we can do, and we support you.’ It felt like I was making a mountain out of a molehill. That’s how I felt,” he told BBC Breakfast.
Bayley suggested the show’s pros need more support to know how to work with disabled contestants.
“You’re chucked into a dance hall with a professional dancer and you’re made to do all these moves like lifting and jumping off a table. I think there should be more help for the professional dancer in that way,” he said.
Responding to Bayley’s comments, Mr Davie said: “The door is always open for people to come to the BBC and discuss things we can do to improve, but overall I think we have the systems and processes in place and we are updating and changing it.”
