Giovanni Pernice looked 'frustrated' after his much earlier than expected exit from the new series of Strictly Come Dancing, according to a body language expert.
Italian pro Giovanni, as well as being reigning champion, is a huge fan favourite, meaning that his elimination alongside new celeb partner Richie Anderson at the weekend, came as a huge shock to viewers of the smash hit BBC show. Giovanni and Richie weren't near the bottom of the leaderboard after their samba to Hakuna Matata on Saturday night but, sadly for them, their decent score wasn't enough to keep them out of the dreaded dance-off.
Giovanni and Richie landed in the bottom two alongside Fleur East and Vito Coppola, with their exit sealed by the fact that Craig Revel-Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke all opted to save Fleur and Vito. In the immediate aftermath of the result being confirmed, Richie looked gutted to be going as he spoke to Strictly host Tess Daly and then, on Monday, he and Giovanni joined Rylan Clark on spin-off show It Takes Two.
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And it was when watching that interview that body language expert, Darren Stanton - speaking on behalf of WeLoveBrum.co.uk, claimed that Giovanni looked 'frustrated and disappointed.' Reacting to what he saw on screen, Darren said: "Richie was very emotional on It Takes Two, as he was swinging his leg which is a sign of anxiety and frustration. He also had his arms tightly tucked in which is a self reassurance gesture, almost a self hug, because he was incredibly emotional. He looked down to the side which is a shame gesture suggesting he feels responsible for his position and feels he has let Giovanni down.
“Rapport has been most certainly broken between these two, this does not mean that anyone has fallen out or argued, it simply means that the high state of connection that the two had has been broken largely due to the fact that clearly they have not had to go to rehearsals and don’t have the thought of the next show on high alert in their minds.
Moving onto Giovanni, Darren added: "Giovanni by comparison sat very still with his legs crossed and his hands intertwined and maintained his composure throughout the interview. I think he felt awkward being in this position and perhaps embarrassment at being voted out. There was little or no physical connection between Richie and Giovanni, demonstrating that lack of rapport now present between them.
“I noticed that Richie kept looking at Giovanni, however, this was not reciprocated by Giovanni, I would stress this doesn’t mean he is feeling angry or resentful, rather more frustration and disappointment.”
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