Strictly Come Dancing star Giovanni Pernice addressed fans' disappointment ahead of Halloween week.
The BBC One show is returning to screens this weekend for a very special Halloween themed special, which will see the remaining celebrities and their professional dance partners take to the dancefloor to perform for the Strictly spook-tacular. Giovanni and his partner EastEnders actress Rose Ayling-Ellis made history last Halloween with their routine.
Ahead of tonight's Halloween show, one Strictly fan page took to social media to remind Giovanni of his history making last year with Rose, after the pair received a perfect score of 40 out of 40 for their spooky dance.
Alongside the post, the fan wrote: "I wish it wasn't this way Gio!" Giovanni won't be performing during the Halloween special for the first time since joining the show in 2015. He and his celebrity partner Richie Anderson were booted off the show during Movie Week.
"Well technically I'm not competing this year which means nobody is beating the title ha ha ha!! Anyway, enjoy the show tonight… I know I will," he wrote in response to the fan alongside a string of Halloween themed emojis.
His comments come after Giovanni denied he was quitting Strictly - after making an early exit from the competition.
A source exclusively told The Mirror amid rumours of Giovanni quitting the show: "This is the show which made Gio's dreams come true. Gio loves Strictly and looks forward to many more years on the show dancing and entertaining."
Giovanni also addressed the rumours on his Instagram story too, where he insisted that he "isn't going anywhere" amid reports he wanted to quit the show after feeling he was "wasted" this year after crashing out so early.
Giovanni has become a fan favourite since he joined the show in 2015.
Rose and Giovanni received wide acclaim for their beautiful dances over the series, including a special moment in one of their dances where they danced alongside 10 seconds of complete silence to raise awareness of the hardships felt by the deaf community.
He had been subjected to feud rumours with his celebrity partner Richie, but he hit back at the rumours during an appearance on It Takes Two previously, insisting the pair got on very well together.
"We are having a good, we're definitely having a good time. Obviously it's a dance competition at the end of the day so we have to learn something," Giovanni insisted as he looked straight down the camera, "But there is no problem. Where is the camera? There is no problem between us, we are having a good time. So forget about what you are writing, it's not true."
