The Strictly Come Dancing abuse scandal continues to be handled terribly

The BBC, Strictly fans and Lorraine Kelly all show why it's so hard for women to come forward

As some of you know, I love a bit of Strictly. In fact, before Graziano Di Prima’s true colours came out, I already had a little bit of excitement thinking how close we were to the return of those sequinned Saturday nights.

But, with the accusations that pro dancer, Graziano, physically and verbally assaulted his partner, Zara McDermott, I’m feeling pretty flat about the return of my favourite show.

It’s not just the revelations of this abusive behaviour that make me feel this way, but it’s also the reaction from fans, fellow cast members, the BBC themselves and Lorraine Kelly, who, we’ll get to.

Before the Graziano news, we had the Giovanni Pernice and Amanda Abbington scandal, which has been so dragged out, it’s insulting to Amanda and the other former contestants who came together to make claims about Giovanni’s behaviour.

Back in January 2024, former contestant Amanda, requested rehearsal footage from her time on the show in 2023 and was alleged to be seeking legal advice.

In March, it was reported that a meeting was held between Amanda and two more of Giovanni’s former celebrity dance partners: Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh, to discuss their experiences working with him.

In May, Giovanni released a statement denying the claims, while the BBC remained silent, but it was reported they had begun an internal investigation.

However, it wasn’t until June, when the BBC released the 2024 line up, with Giovanni omitted, that it was clear he wouldn’t be returning to the show.

Not only has the BBC remained silent on this, members of the Strictly cast have publicly supported Giovanni.

Head judge Shirley Ballas said “The truth would prevail”, while commenting how good Giovanni had always been to her and her family. Another judge, Anton, is currently on tour with Giovanni.

Yes, Giovanni hasn’t been charged with anything, but if three women have sought legal advice due to his behaviour towards them and this is the kind of united front the BBC are allowing, then they are responsible for continuing to create an environment which harbours this behaviour and prevents victims from speaking out.

I say it time and again with these celebrities, but just from a PR perspective, can the BBC not get their people in line. If Anton and Shirley want to support him privately, fine, but there should be repercussions for their roles on the show if they choose to do it publicly.

As a result of the Giovanni investigation, junior production members, reported Graziano’s behaviour towards Zara. As, I’m sure you’ve read, the allegations include hitting and kicking, with at least one of these alleged assaults being caught on camera.

The first I heard of this, was when I opened my Instagram to a statement from Graziano, where he wrote he deeply regretted the events that led to his departure from Strictly and respected the HR process that meant it was best he “Step away”.

Immediately, the comment section was flooded with people supporting him and tearing down Zara for her alleged poor work ethic.

All of these comments coming from female fans of the show, may I add.

I replied to one and said I hoped one day they would work through their internalised mysogony, to which another woman replied, “What a funny thing to say”.

I’ve discussed my frustration with the majority of the Strictly audience before on here, so it didn’t surprise me. But, it’s also why I’m so proud of Zara releasing her own statement today, corroborating the claims and sharing her horrific experience.

I do, however, expect better from the people reporting on it, including Lorraine Kelly, who, after reading Zara’s statement on air, said, “I do think, looking ahead, it’s all about getting the right person, with the right person. Making sure that somebody who is vulnerable, is looked after.”

I’m sorry but why is Lorraine and her outdated opinions still on the air. What are you implying here? That it’s Zara’s fault? Something about her behaviour meant they didn’t gel and that’s why he hit her?

Oh, no. She got abused because she was “vulnerable”.

Talk about victim blaming.

At this point, I could do a complication of all Lorraine’s awful view points, but it’s also worth noting that when she interviewed Giovanni around the time of his allegations, she said this.

“We know with Strictly, sometimes it doesn’t work and it didn’t work the last time. Are you going to change anything because I know you’re a perfectionist.”

Before Giovanni could even respond, she added, “You just want to win and I don’t want to blame you for that”. Oh and again she added her favourite, “Just sometimes you’re not gonna gel”.

*Smashes all the keys on her keyboard*

Not ‘gelling’ with someone, is not an excuse for physical or verbal violence, Lorraine. Neither is being a perfectionist.

With the BBC announcing that all celebrity contestants will now have chaperones in rehearsals, I hope they don’t stop there.

They also need to take a look at the actions of the judges and other cast members, who are, in my opinion, responsible for creating a culture where women cannot speak up.