Giovanni Pernice gave a supportive message to Richie Anderson as their Strictly Come Dancing performance ended on Saturday night, days after it was reported there was backstage 'tension' between the pair.
After winning Strictly last year with Rose Ayling-Ellis, Giovanni has been paired with Radio 2 and One Show star Richie in one of two same-sex pairings for the new series. The two gave a very entertaining debut in the first live show, performing an energetic cha ch cha to Wham classic I'm Your Man. However, while both looked like were having a ball on the dancefloor, claims then surfaced that there was 'tension' between them behind the scenes, with sources saying they 'hadn't clicked.'
Richie heaped praise on Giovanni in a glowing Instagram post, with the Italian pro dancer then shutting down the rumours during an appearance on It Takes Two. And Giovanni looked to be full of admiration for his celeb partner as the duo delivered a fantastic quickstep routine to Dancing Fool on Saturday's Strictly.
