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Louise Thomas
Editor
A junior crew member on Strictly Come Dancing has spoken out about the verbal abuse he faced when working as a runner on the show.
In a BBC interview, Oscar claimed the “whole culture” of the popular BBC dancing competition is “toxic.” He told the broadcaster he was often shouted at and called stupid. Once a celebrity got so close to his face he could feel their spit.
The programme has made headlines recently after a slew of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants on the show. The focus of the scandal has largely been on celebrities and their professional dance partners.
The BBC launched an investigation after allegations were made about dancer Giovanni Pernice by former participant Amanda Abbington. Pernice rejects the allegations.
TV star Zara McDermott said she was involved in incidents in the training room that she now finds “incredibly distressing” to watch back, following the news that her dance partner Graziano Di Prima has left the show. The results of the investigation have not been released.
One woman, who also only gave her first name to the broadcaster, Jane, worked as a TV package editor on the spin-off show, It Takes Two. She said the edit suite where she was stationed felt like a therapist’s room, with junior staff offloading about the abuse they had faced that day.
Jane said they experienced “verbal abuse” from some of the dancers, including “shouting, screaming and being insulted, to an extraordinary level”.
The testimony of what Oscar experienced and what Jane overheard paints a dark picture of life on the show. On one occasion, Oscar was screamed at by a celebrity in front of his colleagues.
He said: “People were stopping in the corridor to catch a glimpse of what was happening.” That was the final straw that led him to quit.
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Others have described more positive experiences. Laura, a make-up artist, has worked on the show for eight years and has been “shocked” to hear some of the allegations. But conceded that it had made her “a bit apprehensive” about returning for the new season.
Oscar did not raise the bullying during his tenure as he felt: “Unless you were a production executive or one of the producer’s friends, you weren’t empowered to raise issues.”
In response, BBC Studios told the BBC it was “sorry” Oscar felt unable to speak out. They said: “The welfare and safety of our crew on each series has always been, and remains, our utmost priority.”
Another junior member of staff Jack told the BBC that the “vibe” was “all about the glitz and glamour and no care for those making the show”. Anna, not her real name, also said junior people didn’t feel they could report things for fear of reprisals.
Last month, the broadcaster’s director general Tim Davie apologised to Strictly contestants. The BBC boss said: “I’m very sorry that anyone has had an experience on Strictly that hasn’t been wholly positive.”
