Strictly Come Dancing 2023 #35

[MeghanSnarkle]

So what happened with Rose? I'm guessing as she was clearly a golden ticket and always had an interpreter present, he knew to play nice.

Rose was still on contract with EastEnders when she did strictly and she was always such a straight talker with who she loved in the cast and storylines that mattered to her and things like that, then when she got Gio as her partner on strictly she was just as straight forward and would regularly say she wasn't putting up with any of his 'nonsense' and wasn't going to fall for any of his advances,
She was always extremely close with Danny Dyer and he was very protective of her as he played her dad at the time and saw her like his own and he would drop the odd comment of 'If he keeps on at you come and tell me, my girl ' kinda thing.

There was just always a sense on EE socials of Rose being able to deal with him and not taking any of his crap but what exactly that was I don't know.

 

[Ginnyjo]

I wonder if its a pay dispute that caused this? would AAs fee be cut for pulling out?

 

[soccergirl]

The Gio fans on FB are already circling the wagons. Amanda will have to have some proof to turn the hardcore against him. And it's unlikely evidence would ever be released to the public. Imagine the BBC supplying a clip of Gio shouting 'get the fleckerl right you witch, unlike that useless twit Richie!'

Also, Vito’s issue with Gio did not start with Amanda! There’s clearly been bad feeling for well over a year (possibly Jowita-related..)

 

[Boring Monday]

Why didn't they ask Amanda back for the final show??? It's all very strange

Back in the day Fern Britton was less than complimentary about Artem. Same with Linda Bellingham and Darren (although to be fair, that was her strange husband after she died)

I would have thought that these days the keeping the celebrity happy would rank way above keeping the pro happy. And given all the bad publicity the BBC has had, the second Amanda says "mental health" they should have been moving heaven and earth to keep her happy.

If Gio returns to strictly - and its looking like a big IF - he needs to speak to Anton about lasting on the show.

I know he's a divisive figure, but it seems he's still friendly with previous partners - Judy Murray always comes to see him at his scottish shows and rumour has it Anne Widdecombe and Ruth Langsford requested him as their partner

If the celebs leave for mental health reasons, they don’t tend to come back for the final - Will and Rob both didn’t return.

It seems like they really don't like to admit the sorting hat has made a mistake and that people who get on at the meet and greet just might not work well together over a week of long days and frustration. They have a bench, use them even if it’s only for a week while a solution is bashed out, and if that’s a permanent change so be it. When you think back to some of the stuff that’s leaked out with the likes of Lynda and Fern and Georgina and Gary and Danny (and those 2 were more from the pro side) and even Lulu then they’ve probably been lucky not to have crashed up against something like this before.
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I wonder if its a pay dispute that caused this? would AAs fee be cut for pulling out?

They’ve had so many people pull out that I assume there is something in the contract, if there is a fee penalty.

 

[Auga]

I just don’t know what to make of it all.
I’m no Gio fan but I think TPTB would have brought back Gios’s ankle injury and brought another pro in if it was solely his behaviour. If she was that distressed I can’t imagine her being forced to dance with him.

That would have required both of them to play along with the ankle injury story in the clauditorium and in media. I can see either or both refusing to lie.

 

[ChastityDingle]

The Gio fans on FB are already circling the wagons. Amanda will have to have some proof to turn the hardcore against him. And it's unlikely evidence would ever be released to the public. Imagine the BBC supplying a clip of Gio shouting 'get the fleckerl right you witch, unlike that useless twit Richie!'

Also, Vito’s issue with Gio did not start with Amanda! There’s clearly been bad feeling for well over a year (possibly Jowita-related..)

I'm not belittling what may or may not have happened between them, but I can't stop laughing at this.

 

[glasgow27]

I remember reading on DS from someone with connections to the show that Steve Backshall had asked for a different pro on the tour which Strictly declined so he didn't go on it. At the time, it was public news that he & Ola had a very bad partnership. So if Amanda had asked for a change of partner and it was denied, then it might not be the first time.

 

[Fanny Muchmore]

Episode one - I'm surprised it's still going 20 years later, I don't remember it being this awful

 

[Geetbo]

Gio definitely needs to speak to Anton about damage limitation. Anton managed to come back from something arguably worse than this.

 

[ButtonDownTheHutches]

Uh oh - the Amanda hater on DS has popped up...I'm sure Mr. Gio the LGBT ally was so disturbed:

If it’s true that Amanda is pursuing legal action, I’m pretty sure it’s due to a bit more than a different ‘viewpoint’
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for all his RBF Gorka is very good at settling the nervy and adapting his teaching style.

When he stepped in with Anastasia to fill in for Brendan, she seemed so much more relaxed and produced a lovely dance.

Thinking about it, Gorka & Amanda would have made a good partnership. She was a very talented dancer.
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I mean given there are supposed to be psychologists and counsellors on tap, if someone was so stressed and distressed they went to the producers for help and was ignored that would be pretty damning.

It feels like something like this has been a long time brewing and they’re lucky to have escaped it for so long. It does seem that they’re failing in their duty of care in pursuit of ever-higher stakes.

Craig’s not wrong that they’re a looooooong way from series 1 now: the training hours, physical expectations, social media/additional media requirements, and emotional manipulation for sob-story purposes make the show look like absolute hell as a participant nowadays. Add in the tabloid intrusion and online abuse, and it’s potentially a very nasty experience.

 

[Libbylulu]

So Amanda has popped the ‘one big happy family’ bubble. I can’t see Gio coming back from this especially as he’s now an older pro and was probably on his way out anyway.

 

[MidCenturyMadOne]

He only seems to hang out with Lauren (who is his employee), Kai, and Gorka. It was notable at the Ballando final that Vito was snapped with Graz and with Nikita and Gio was on his own/with other Italians.

I noticed he was hanging out with Nadiya a lot in the Clauditorium and hugging her. After she made a dance appearance at Anton’s show in London it wouldn’t surprise me if she’s likely to move to being leading lady for the joint Anton and Gio tours, or possibly Kai will swap for Anton. Even Kai has dampened down his bestie friendship with Gio though, his other bff Pasquale seems to have taken over and now does the dance classes with Gio. The only person G was shown with at Ballande was Pasquale too. Kai noticeably didn’t congratulate P on his Ballande win either, which is highly unusual for him.
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I remember Ranvir talking on ITT about how she made Giovanni change his teaching approach as it didn't work for her and was breaking her confidence instead of building it. They made a whole big thing of it as part of the 'new softer Gio', so it's weird that he didn't internalise that, unless working with someone outwardly much more bolshy like Amanda made him think that she didn't need it.
That and him being a crass head anyway, which we know. But surely he would be careful to behave nicely when the cameras are there?


The only unpleasant thing I remember with Rose is that story she posted and removed quickly of him storming in with Kai raging about 'that stupid cow' when he didn't know Rose was there. It was presumably about Maura, as they split up a day later, and Rose obviously didn't hear what he said. But it showed he has a nasty temper. I'm sure he behaved perfectly apart from that.

I don’t remember that story, but it’s interesting the amount of time the pros were together backstage when they were insisting they were all bubbled with their celebs. In quarter final interview week Kai said he never saw Gio in the flesh as they were kept apart …his ability to bullshit was in full flow even then.
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I do think strictly as a whole need to look at their duty of care. A lot of the celebs have no experience of the intimacy of being pressed up against a professional dancer for weeks on end, of course it will cause ‘the curse’ or them one falling for them, it’s obvious.
The opposite is the shock of the training schedule, these pros are in it to win it, but they should have strict guidelines about training, with proper breaks . I remember Rhys saying about Nancy’s relentless training with no breaks. AJ happily did 10/11 hour days, but she was a personal trainer who was super fit..until her ankle gave out with the wear and tear. It was only that incident that got Strictly to have on set physios…after 18 series! It says a lot about her positive attitude that she didn’t sue Strictly and has kept in touch, despite that injury being ongoing. She was already suffering PTSD from her stint on Celebrity SAS ( where Sam Thompson ended up letting her carry all his kit as well as her own, says a lot about him). Will Bayley and Jade from previous series also suffered preventable injuries on the show, but as far I can tell didn’t sue.

 

[LowCalCalzoneZone]

I just can't see how Gio can com back from this? Even if it turns out it was just a personality clash, he still doesn't come across well at all. Of course, usual caveat that it's coming from the Sun and take it with a pinch of salt etc, but it's clear that something happened

Say if Amanda did ask for another partner and Strictly refused, maybe another issue is that they might have been in breach of contract to Gio at the time and they were worried about the implications of that? But even so, I think potentially throwing a celeb under the bus instead isn't a great look

 

[IdeletedbutI'mbackagain]

I just can't see how Gio can com back from this? Even if it turns out it was just a personality clash, he still doesn't come across well at all. Of course, usual caveat that it's coming from the Sun and take it with a pinch of salt etc, but it's clear that something happened

Say if Amanda did ask for another partner and Strictly refused, maybe another issue is that they might have been in breach of contract to Gio at the time and they were worried about the implications of that? But even so, I think potentially throwing a celeb under the bus instead isn't a great look

For a show that is meant to be about the celebrity it definitely isn't a good look. If a celebrity asks for another partner that should be listened to. They have other dancers waiting, why punish the celebrity (that's kinda how it feels to me) and ruin the whole experience.

 

[ChastityDingle]

Early on, I know we discussed it here at the time, the papers had a story about Amanda storming out of training sessions, but all seemed well after that. Plus the papers make stories out of nothing. Katya (I think) was seen looking downcast, early on.
One of the pros anyway. All they were doing was walking along the street. If they were grinning to themselves, well that would be another story.
'Pro looks smug leaving training...'

I remember Gio amd Amanda on ITT, where he had his hand firmly stuck to her knee. It looked unnatural as though trying to disprove any chat about them not getting on well. Again we discussed it here at the time.

I don't know what to think, but I do hope that lessons were learned this time around about injuries and potential injuries. As well as having a look at how to handle things if there is a clash of personalities. They could also look at making the whole thing a bit less punishing on the celebrity, in terms of what is expected - so many dances, so little time.

 

[soccergirl]

I just can't see how Gio can com back from this? Even if it turns out it was just a personality clash, he still doesn't come across well at all. Of course, usual caveat that it's coming from the Sun and take it with a pinch of salt etc, but it's clear that something happened

Say if Amanda did ask for another partner and Strictly refused, maybe another issue is that they might have been in breach of contract to Gio at the time and they were worried about the implications of that? But even so, I think potentially throwing a celeb under the bus instead isn't a great look

Well it's in the Mail now and the comments are all pro-Gio so either LadyL has been busy or he is still popular (it helps him that Amanda was not generally popular with the public - different story if it was an Ellie or Angela S figure).

Speaking of LadyL she's still MIA from DS - her last post was during the final. Did Vito winning send her to hospital? If so, this saga may finish her off (caveat: I hope she is ok and returns to her genteel thirsty stanning)

 

[IdeletedbutI'mbackagain]

Well it's in the Mail now and the comments are all pro-Gio so either LadyL has been busy or he is still popular (it helps him that Amanda was not generally popular with the public - different story if it was an Ellie or Angela S figure).

Speaking of LadyL she's still MIA from DS - her last post was during the final. Did Vito winning send her to hospital? If so, this saga may finish her off (caveat: I hope she is ok and returns to her genteel thirsty stanning)

I actually don't think it would be much different if it was Ellie or Angela S. People do not take kindly to women rocking the boat no matter who they are.

 

[posy]

Just reading some of the comments on the daily fail and a lot people don’t like Amanda. The problem is Gio comes across as having no compassion he’s very driven and can imagine that’s his teaching style. However, as the professional he should first get an understanding for his celeb, work on their confidence and build them up - takes notes from the likes of Gorka, Vito, Graz and Jowita.

 

[soccergirl]

I actually don't think it would be much different if it was Ellie or Angela S. People do not take kindly to women rocking the boat no matter who they are.

I dunno, Gio is a bit marmite with the general public: when you cultivate a lothario image you are always going to be vulnerable to that 'he loves himself' criticism. The name Fanny Rat comes from a Daily Mail comment about him! Even aside from the trans stuff, Amanda's online persona is 'bolshy and no-nonsense broad'. I think a woman who was more widely liked would have more traction with this, just as I think the allegations would land less with a less divisive pro like, say, Kai or Carlos.
Someone on DS pointed out that Gio is the only pro Layton doesn't follow, and that he has been friends with Amanda for years. The plot thickens.. Anyway, this is keeping me entertained while I have Covid - just need the tapes to come out now!

 

[IdeletedbutI'mbackagain]

I dunno, Gio is a bit marmite with the general public: when you cultivate a lothario image you are always going to be vulnerable to that 'he loves himself' criticism. The name Fanny Rat comes from a Daily Mail comment about him! IEven aside from the trans stuff, Amanda's online persona is 'bolshy and no-nonsense broad'. I think a woman who was more widely liked would have more traction with this, just as I think the allegations would land less with a less divisive pro like, say, Kai or Carlos.
Someone on DS pointed out that Gio is the only pro Layton doesn't follow, and that he has been friends with Amanda for years. The plot thickens.. Anyway, this is keeping me entertained while I have Covid - just need the tapes to come out now!

Would love to see the tapes!!!