Strictly's Shirley Ballas vows to stay by Giovanni Pernice's side 'forever' as she and Anton Du Beke publicly support under siege dancer amid 'bullying' row

Strictly's head judge Shirley Ballas has publicly defended Giovanni Pernice after he was accused of exhibiting 'threatening and abusive' behaviour towards his celebrity dance partners. Strictly judges Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke showed their support for Giovanni Pernice at his dance workshop on Sunday after he was accused of exhibiting 'threatening and abusive' behaviour towards his celebrity dance partners The Queen of Latin went on to share a story about Giovanni's caring side, revealing that when her mother Audrey battled cancer, Giovanni was a source of comfort for her. The professional dancer, 33, is at the centre of a bullying row after claims made of misconduct by his Strictly partner Amanda Abbington and two other women As Shirley, 57, came onto the stage to teach a Jive, she couldn't help but express her support for Giovanni - who quit Strictly this year amid the scandal She told the dancers it was an 'honour and a privilege' to be at the workshop with Giovanni, 33, adding: 'I’ve known him for 10 years and we’re good friends.' The Queen of Latin went on to share a story about Giovanni's caring side, revealing that when her mother Audrey battled cancer, Giovanni was a source of comfort for her Also attending the event was Anton Du Beke, 57 - who has been performing with the star on their Together tour Arriving at the event to teach a Quickstep, the longest serving Strictly professional wasted no time showing how much he cared for Giovanni, wrapping him up in a huge bear hug Shirley and Anton showed their support for the star hours after he was dealt with the fresh blow that the BBC probe investigating his conduct could run into next year. Giovanni has faced a wave of scrutiny ever since Amanda dramatically quit last year In 2016, former Love Island host Laura Whitmore said she 'cried every day' and felt 'uncomfortable' while training with him Good Morning Britain presenter Ranvir Singh also complained about Giovanni to producers back in 2020, during their time on the show Former partners have also come out to back him, including Debbie McGee, the widow of the magician Paul Daniels, who was paired with him in 2017 He said in a statement: 'You will be as surprised as I am that allegations have been made about my dance teaching methods in the media this week.