Pete Wicks takes cheeky swipe at BBC Strictly ‘chaperone’ rules: ‘In case anyone believes the press’

Strictly star Pete Wicks has seemingly taken a swipe at the “chaperone rule” in which the BBC put in place after the allegations made against former professionals Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima.

Back on July, 16, the broadcaster announced it was going to put a member of the production staff in all future rehearsals following complaints about the behaviour of the two former professionals.

It claimed there would also be two new dedicated welfare producers, as part of a string of extra measures.

Amanda Abbington claimed she was “abused” by Pernice – who vehemently denied the allegations and was recently cleared of 11 – as well as Zara McDermott who claimed she was “kicked, hit and spit on” by Di Prima.

A statement from the corporation said at the time: “The BBC is today announcing additional steps to strengthen welfare and support on Strictly Come Dancing.

“Concerns that have arisen in recent months have been fundamentally about training and rehearsals. The actions we announce today are designed to address that.”

Now, it seems 2024 contestant Wicks has taken a cheeky swipe at the “rule” which was put in place after posting a sarcastic message on his Instagram story.

The star posted a mirror selfie of himself, his partner Jowita Przystal and another lady standing behind them.

He captioned the image: “Back at training with our delightful training room researcher… (Just in case anyone believes the press)” alongside a side eye and laughing face emoji.

The swipe comes after the BBC finally concluded their investigations into the claims made against Pernice by Abbington.

In a statement, the BBC said: “We take any allegations of bullying and harassment very seriously and this review has taken time due to its complex nature and our desire to ensure a rigorous and robust process was undertaken.

“We want to apologise to Amanda Abbington and thank her for coming forward and taking part. We know this would not have been an easy thing to do.

“At the time, although the production team took steps to address the issues as they understood them, ultimately these were not enough. This is why the measures we have taken to further strengthen our existing protocols are so important.

“The BBC has already taken extensive steps to enhance our duty of care for everyone on the show and a full note of these steps is published alongside this statement”.

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Elsewhere, the former The Only Way is Essex star has been leaving viewers at home impressed with his dance moves.

This weekend, Wicks and Przystal will perform the Quickstep to Town Called Malice by The Jam.