Strictly’s Janette Manrara breaks her silence over show bullying probe as husband Aljaz Skorjanec comes under fire
STRICTLY Come Dancing star Janette Manrara has broken her silence amid the show’s bullying probe and declared that ‘serious incidents risks destroying’ the programme.
Janette, 40, has lifted the lid on her thoughts just as her husband Aljaz Skorjanec, 34, makes a controversial return to the BBC dance floor.
Professional dancer Aljaz is making a comeback for the new series of Strictly despite claims of a “shocking” altercation with a female professional.
Janette has spoken openly about the cloud hanging over Strictly in a new podcast and says she supports people who speak out about bullying in the workplace.
However, the dancer has also shared her fears over “the wonderful things” Strictly has done being “destroyed” by ‘very serious incidents’.
Janette spoke out on the latest episode of Postcards Of Midlife podcast, saying: “I think when you hear and read the things you’ve been reading lately, of course you can’t feel for the people involved.
“First and foremost, I have to say that people should not be afraid to talk. If you feel something is wrong, or if you feel uncomfortable or if you’re in a bullying situation, especially at work, you shouldn’t be afraid to talk.
“So I’m very happy that the people who have spoken, have spoken because it’s important to feel they can speak.
“Then second to that, it’s so hard when you see things online that are trying to destroy all the wonderful stuff that Strictly has brought.
“The show is growing. Of course, times are changing. You can’t expect behaviours that are not acceptable now to have been the same 20 years ago.
“We’re still learning and accepting pronouns and the correct way to speak to people and what is the correct etiquette in certain situations.
“We are evolving as human beings very quickly and we are learning a lot about who we are and Strictly Come Dancing is no different.
“It’s a statement of us being humans. It’s people doing the show, it’s not a machine. Although it looks and acts like a machine because of how brilliantly it has done, but it’s people who are doing this.”
Janette added: “I think for me personally, it’s important people don’t forget all the wonderful things that Strictly has brought over the last 20 years. Because 99 per cent of it is positive.
“And then you have incidents of things that come up that are very serious and should be brought up and should be looked at, but not at the detriment of destroying all the wonderful things that the show has done.
Strictly's full scandal so far
Strictly Come Dancing's scandal has been growing over the past few months, with several major players speaking out about what went on. Here are the key moments of what's happened so far
16th May: Giovanni Pernice sensationally quits Strictly Come Dancing after nine years on the show.
17th May: Giovanni becomes the centre of an official investigation after three former partners – believed to be Amanda Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh – make complaints to the BBC.
16th June: Giovanni releases an official statement vowing to clear his name and denies any wrongdoing.
8th July: Strictly confirms Aljaz Skorjanec will return to the series, replacing Giovanni, after initially quitting the show two years ago.
10th July: Amanda Abbington launches fresh legal proceedings to get the rehearsal footage from her time with Giovanni, after allegedly he refused to release the videos.
13th July: Graziano Di Prima is axed from Strictly for “gross misconduct” after footage of his treatment of Zara McDermott is brought to the attention of the BBC.
Graziano quickly broke his silence, apologising for his behaviour in a statement and saying he “deeply regrets it”, adding his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected his training regime.”
15th July: Strictly bosses implement new duty of care protocols, including having a chaperone present throughout all rehearsals.
16th July: Zara McDermott speaks out publicly for first time. She states while the production team were “amazing to work with”, she found the rehearsal room “completely different”, confirming there’s footage of “certain situations”.
19th July: Anton Du Beke is put under the spotlight for his “1970s attitude” and treatment of female celeb stars, particularly after allegedly referring to 2009 partner Laila Rouass as a “p***” after getting a spray tan.
21st July: Paralympian Will Bayley, who has limb condition arthrogryposis, revealed he was encouraged to leap from a table during a dance routine, despite fears. The stunt caused an injury that forced him to withdraw from the show.
22nd July: MasterChef’s Gregg Wallace admits he broke down in tears and got a nasty stress rash on his face during his time on Strictly in 2014.
22nd July: Despite ongoing issues, the Strictly professional cast begin rehearsals for this year’s series.
23rd July: Celebrity agent Melanie Blake claims she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed pro dancer while backstage on the show, and claims she witnessed ageism, rudeness and a rough treatment to the point of injury.
23rd July: Strictly is forced to beef up security after ‘an intruder scales the wall of the rehearsal studio’.
23rd July: BBC boss Tim Davie breaks his silence on the ongoing allegations against Strictly, saying he is ‘deeply sorry’, adding: “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 thinks 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.”
24th July: Strictly 2023 star Krishnan Guru-Murthy holds a bombshell interview with Amanda Abbington on Channel 4 news, where she claims she was bullied, with some of the ‘humilation being of a sexual nature’.
27th July: Laura Whitmore releases a statement regarding her Strictly experience, saying “I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong”.
She adds she is not part of the official complaint, but has come forward to support Amanda with the BBC, alongside others.
28th July: Laila Rouass speaks out against the accusations regarding Anton Du Beke, saying she “never felt pressured” by him and “personally insisted on six to seven hours training a day”.
10th August: Graziano breaks his silence on his Strictly axe, saying “these vile, false allegations have ruined my life.”
He also told of the “shocking” end to his friendship with Zara McDermott.
We also revealed that Amanda Abbington was also quizzed for a second time as Strictly execs recruited 15 new staff to monitor rehearsals.
11th August: Just as the investigation was expected to conclude, Amanda made a dramatic intervention. Giovanni was on the brink of being cleared until Amanda handed in more text messages.
24th August: Graziano Di Prima called in top lawyers to sue the BBC and to try to clear his name. He recruited big hitters Whitestone Chambers to fight his corner.
A source said: “They’ve also looked at his BBC contract and believe there are grounds to sue.”
Meanwhile, the BBC also delayed releasing the findings of the probe into Giovanni Pernice. The Sun revealed that the results of the three-month investigation were unlikely to be announced in August.
“So, I really hope that people still tune in and still love the show and still appreciate what Strictly is trying to do and has been trying to do for the last 20 years.
“And then hopefully we can move forward and the people involved and women involved can have closure and feel that they have been listened to and treated appropriately in these situations.”
Janette has not mentioned the specific allegations made against her husband Aljaz in the podcast.
The Sun previously told how the Slovenian, 34, agreed to go after a fiery incident on a boozy night out on the 2022 live tour.
The BBC, however, has denied an official complaint was made over the incident.
Meanwhile, the BBC is due to announce the findings of the internal investigation into Giovanni Pernice’s case within days.
The Italian dancer quit the show over his own abuse claims earlier this year. He denies any wrongdoing.
Fellow Italian dancer, Graziano Di Prima, was dumped by the show for kicking dance partner Zara McDermott.