BBC CONCLUDES INVESTIGATION INTO STRICTLY COME DANCING

The BBC has now concluded its review into the complaints made by Amanda Abbington against Giovanni Pernice.

The BBC say: "We take any allegations of bullying and harassment very seriously and this review has taken time due to its complex nature and our desire to ensure a rigorous and robust process was undertaken.

Strictly Come Dancing is a family show and we rightly expect very high standards. While competition can be tough, rigorous and demanding, we want the show to ultimately be a joyous and transformative experience. It is a great shame if this hasn’t been the case for everyone who has appeared on the show.

We have assessed the complaints and we have upheld some, but not al

l, of the complaints made. We want to apologise to Amanda Abbington and to thank her for coming forward and taking part. We know this would not have been an easy thing to do.

At the time, although the production team took steps to address the issues as they understood them, ultimately these were not enough. This is why the measures we have taken to further strengthen our existing protocols are so important.

The BBC heard from a number of individuals in making its findings. We want to thank them for participating.

The BBC has already taken extensive steps to enhance our duty of care for everyone on the show and a full note of these steps is published alongside this statement."

More details are available here.