Giovanni Pernice has teased his new dance partner after hitting back at claims he was set to quit Strictly Come Dancing. The Italian dancer emerged victorious in 2021 when he lifted the Glitterball trophy for the first time in seven years on the BBC One dance show with Rose Ayling-Ellis.
The reigning champ then returned in September for the 20th series of the much-loved TV competition where he was in one of two same-sex couples. Giovanni was paired with BBC Radio 2 star Richie Anderson and despite delighting the judges and viewers with their routines, the couple faced an early exit as they became the second couple to be eliminated from the contest.
The pair went up against Fleur East and Vito Coppola and had to dance again for their survival in the competition after the second public vote of the series saw both couples receive the fewest votes from the public. They had to reprise their third-week dances again, with Richie and Giovanni performing their head-turning samba to Hakuna Matata from the much-loved Disney movie The Lion King.
