It Takes Two host Janette Manrara has had her say on whether or not she and co-host Fleur East – as well as Strictly presenters Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly – will address the saga that has engulfed the series in 2024.
For months, Strictly has dominated headlines following a series of allegations made by former contestants towards some of its professional dancers.
Giovanni Pernice is no longer part of the show after facing allegations of “threatening and abusive” behaviour from his time working with Amanda Abbington last year.
Abbington has also claimed there was an incident of “humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature” during her stint on the show – Pernice has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
Elsewhere, Graziano Di Prima was axed from the show for “kicking” his partner Zara McDermott, something he admitted to and apologised for but claimed he “is not a monster”.
Manrara also found herself caught in the crosshairs of complaints as they rained in from former stars due to her comments to Will Bayley when they participated on the show.
Bayley claimed he was left with lifelong injuries due to the demands set upon him by Manrara in the rehearsal room, prompting the pro dancer to issue a statement defending her training methods.
The BBC’s investigation into the conduct of Strictly professionals remains an ongoing one and with a little over one week until the launch of the 2024 series, several fans are eagerly awaiting the outcome.
Speaking earlier this week, Manrara was grilled on whether she on It Takes Two or Daly and Winkleman on the Saturday night show will address the ongoing probe.
“I don’t pick the script. I don’t decide what happens or doesn’t happen on the show,” she began to Times Radio.
“But in my personal opinion, I think it would not be fair to the new contestants to bring up that kind of negativity because they are here to have a positive experience.
“I think our jobs as hosts of the show – mine as It Takes Two, and for Tess (Daly) and Claudia (Winkleman) on Strictly Come Dancing – is to solely celebrate the people that are there now, their experience, and talk about what they are going through, celebrate the pro dancers and their group numbers that they’re doing now, and focus on moving forward.”
Fans will have to wait until the launch show on September 14 to see whether or not the investigation will be mentioned by any of the cast.
Elsewhere, Manrara also opened up to OK! about the impact the exits of Di Prima and Pernice had on her, as well as the scandal as a whole.
She told the publication: “It absolutely hurts my heart. It breaks my heart, because I know how hard everybody works to make it such a wonderful show.
“So when you see the headlines and the things that have come out, it does hurt. The whole team is like an extended family to us.
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“I know first hand how hard every single one of them works to make that show. It’s honestly such a beautiful place to work. The people make it.
“I think it is important that if certain people have a certain experience, they feel safe enough to talk about it. Nobody should feel like they’re not enjoying their experience on the show.
“Hopefully, now the steps have been put into place so it doesn’t happen again. Specifically, I can only speak from my experience – and Aljaž’s – and for us the priority has always been for our celebrities to enjoy themselves.”
The BBC has implemented a series of changes to the show in order to prioritise welfare of its stars, including chaperones in the rehearsal room.
