James Dreyfus has claimed he asked Strictly Come Dancing bosses to ‘look out’ for Amanda Abbington when he heard she had agreed to take part on the show.
The actor, 55, voiced his support for Amanda, 50, after a Channel 4 interview emotionally detailed her struggle while appearing on the programme.
James told how he was approached to appear on the BBC show but ultimately decided that it wasn’t for him following talks with producers.
James said during his talks he made it clear he would be a ‘controversial’ signing due to his strong opinions and support for women’s rights.
The Thin Blue Line star said he received the backing of Strictly when he asked if they would support him if he received any online backlash.
James Dreyfus has claimed he asked Strictly Come Dancing bosses to ‘look out’ for Amanda Abbington when he heard she had agreed to take part on the show
The actor, 55, voiced his support for Amanda, 50, after a Channel 4 interview emotionally detailed her struggle while appearing on the programme
James previously came under fire in 2021 when he slammed trans activists as ‘misogynistic guys in skirts’ for waging a war of hatred against JK Rowling.
Despite receiving their word that they would ‘have his back’, James decided that appearing as a contestant on the show wasn’t for him.
However he soon learned that Amanda was slated to take part and he says he wrote to the same producers to ask them to look after her due to the fact she had already been the subject of several social media pile-ons.
Sharing a statement on X on Wednesday night in response to Amanda’s emotionally charged interview, he wrote: ‘I was asked to do Strictly last year. I spoke with producers at an initial Zoom meeting.
‘I told them about my opinions, my support for women’s rights, & warned them that I’d be a ‘controversial choice’, so I wanted to know if they’d have my back, should I receive an online backlash.
‘They said yes. And, to be honest, I believed them, as they seemed understanding & sincere. Ultimately, I decided it wasn’t for me. The next thing I heard was that Amanda had been signed.
‘So I wrote to the producers I’d spoken with, pleading with them to make sure they had HER back, as she’d previously had terrible abuse here on ‘X’. I asked them to take care of her, as she’d recently had pile on after pile on for speaking her mind & had since left ‘X’.
‘I heard nothing back. And why would I? I was nothing to do with the programme any longer & I assumed my email had been read & its contents noted.
Sharing a statement on X on Wednesday night in response to Amanda’s emotionally charged interview
James told how he was approached to appear on the BBC show but ultimately decided that it wasn’t for him following talks with producers
‘To see her distress here, to hear what happened, & to witness the effect of this ongoing, eternally vitriolic & downright cruel online mob is just horrendous &, tragically only too familiar to many who simply ask the ‘wrong question’ at the ‘wrong time’ of the ‘wrong people’.
‘When are people going to finally wake up & say ‘enough really is enough’ & make immediate & definitive decisions to stamp this out? It’s utterly galling to see government, institutions, charities, the media & lobby groups dismissing women’s concerns over ANY subject pertinent to THEM?
‘Why are women’s needs STILL on the bottom rung of the ladder?? Crimes against women are skyrocketing & women rights are being rolled back day by day, & yet, when they speak up, & out, they are demonised & used as punching bags for an ever- increasingly aggressive movement, brimming with misogyny & entitlement. Solidarity with you, Amanda Abbington.
‘That you’ve been let down & abused in this way is unconscionable. Please know there’s an ARMY of people here, who will always have your back.’
James isn’t the only one to back Amanda as following the episode fans have thrown their support behind the Sherlock star after her emotional TV appearance.
Amanda sensationally quit the dance competition last year citing ‘personal reasons’ before reports surfaced that she had demanded footage of her rehearsals after the experience with the show and her dance partner Giovanni Pernice left her with PTSD.
During an interview which aired on Wednesday evening, the actress compared the dance show to ‘the trenches’ telling Channel 4 News that BBC producers had been left ‘horrified’ by clips that also allegedly exhibited ‘humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature’.
Amanda claimed Giovanni has tried to stop her legal team from accessing the video ‘evidence’ after producers were forced to put cameras in the dance studio after Amanda raised concerns.
Following the emotional chat, fans flooded social media platform X with supportive messages for Amanda.
One wrote: ‘Amanda Abbington, I believe you. Thank you for speaking up to protect our women and girls’;
Amanda sensationally quit the dance competition last year citing ‘personal reasons’ before reports surfaced that she had demanded footage of her rehearsals after the experience with the show and her dance partner Giovanni Pernice left her with PTSD
During an interview which aired on Wednesday evening, the actress compared the dance show to ‘the trenches’ telling Channel 4 News that BBC producers had been left ‘horrified’ by clips that also allegedly exhibited ‘humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature’
‘Everyone should listen to this interview in full. Amanda deserves to be listened to’;
‘Beautifully done interview with Amanda Abbington. I really send her and her family all our love. Let’s hope a fair and open court case can settle this and no more contestants hurt in the future’;
‘Good on Amanda and the others who are speaking out about Strictly. Somewhere along the way, at least some of the professionals started to see the competition as all about them, rather than about the celebrities who are learning to dance.’
Strictly was plunged into further crisis this evening after Amanda claimed that sacked dancer Giovanni Pernice was trying to block the release of up to 50 hours of ‘toxic’ footage’.
Giovanni, who has strongly denied any threatening or abusive behaviour, was later suspended, with the BBC later launching a probe over claims of off-camera misconduct made by Amanda as well as other celebrities.
Yet in a dramatic twist in the Strictly saga, the actress has claimed Giovanni has tried to stop her legal team from accessing the video ‘evidence’ after producers were forced to put cameras in the dance studio after Amanda raised concerns.
‘There’s 50 hours of footage that’s being blocked. You know, 50 hours is a lot of footage, and a lot of time spent in a room that was toxic,’ she told presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy.
‘It’s out there. There is evidence out there of what happened in that room and I’m not the one who’s blocking it. I’ve said anyone can watch it, but he (Giovanni) doesn’t want anyone to see it, which is quite telling if he’s got nothing to hide.’
The actress said that cameras were installed into her and Giovanni’s rehearsal studio after she raised concerns after the first week of practice with producers wanting to review the footage each week to assess what was ‘going on’ between the pair.
Giovanni had claimed he had asked for the cameras, which Amanda says is untrue.
‘So in the first week, I raised my concerns to the producers,’ the actress explained, as she fought back tears.
Amanda claims Giovanni has tried to stop her legal team from accessing the video ‘evidence’ after producers were forced to put cameras in the dance studio after Amanda raised concerns
Following the emotional chat, fans flooded social media platform X with supportive messages for Amanda
‘Giovanni said that he asked for the cameras, he didn’t ask for the cameras, I know that he didn’t ask for the cameras, because the producers came to me and said, ‘we’re going to put in cameras so we can view the footage at the end of the week and make an assessment and see what’s going on’.
‘And then every Friday, after the next sort of five weeks, I would get the producer saying, on the Friday, ‘we just watched the footage back, we are shocked and horrified, we’re so sorry’.
‘That was to my face on the Friday when we would go in and do the camera rehearsal.’
Throughout the interview, Guru-Murthy, who also starred on the 2023 series, asked whether it was correct that Amanda had experienced ‘humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature’, with the actress holding back tears as she nodded in agreement.
‘Yeah. I mean, you know, one of the many things,’ she said, clarifying it was not harassment.
Ever since the claims first emerged Giovanni has denied all of the allegations, claiming to have provided a dossier of evidence to the Beeb investigators and ‘remains fully confident in clearing his name’.
Disputing Amanda’s claims once again following tonight’s interview, a spokesperson for the Italian dancer said: ‘The BBC has shared the allegations they have been able to substantiate with us.
‘They do not resemble Amanda’s latest allegations, given to Channel 4, in any shape or form. Giovanni refutes any claim of threatening or abusive behaviour.’
After the fallout, Amanda said she did not hear from any one at the BBC again, claiming: ‘I haven’t spoken to anyone from the BBC since Strictly.
‘No one from the BBC has reached out to me since Strictly, either through me or my lawyer.’
In a message to those in charge of the BBC show that has been running since 2004 she added: ‘Just be aware of what’s going on and when you know it’s going on, nip it in the bud. Don’t allow it to continue.’
Amanda went on to claim that she has faced a number of violent threats from both Strictly fans and ‘Giovanni fans’ who have asked her ‘how can you destroy something like Strictly’ .
She revealed the extent of the alleged harassment she has received in recent months from trolls, telling Channel 4 that ‘It has been brutal and relentless and unforgiving’.
Amanda seemingly hit back yesterday at her former Strictly partner Giovanni Pernice after he seemingly branded her a ‘mad woman’
Amanda and Giovanni on Strictly last year
In the Channel 4 News interview, claimed that sacked dancer was trying to block the release of up to 50 hours of ‘toxic’ footage’
‘The aftermath has been something I was not expecting. The death threats and the rape threats not only to myself but to my daughter. The threats of death to my son,’ she added.
‘When you get one or two of the those you can [shrug it off],’ she added. ‘But when it’s dozens of people saying ‘just go kill yourself’, ‘go die of cancer ‘, ‘just kill yourself, your kids will be better off without you as a mother’.
Amanda detailed other horrific messages she allegedly received. Others included ‘I hope your daughter gets raped, I hope your son is stabbed’, ‘you don’t deserve any good things you have done’, ‘you’re a snowflake, you’re stupid, you’re an idiot’.
The bombshell interview comes as the flagship BBC One show continues to be rocked by a string of allegations, which saw Giovanni as well as professional dancer Graziano Di Prima step down.
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Strictly's Amanda Abbington sends thinly-veiled message to Giovanni Pernice following 'mad woman'
Giovanni was accused of bullying by Amanda as well as two other, unnamed contestants.
Graziano was axed from the show last week after allegations emerged that he kicked, hit and spat at reality TV star Zasra McDermott during rehearsals last year .
And just yesterday, Paralympian Will Bayley became the latest star to speak about his time on the show.
The 36-year-old, who was paired with Janette Manrara in 2019, said he was left with life-changing injuries after being made to redo a jump in a routine as he criticised the show’s duty of care.
‘If the BBC are brilliant enough to get people with disabilities in, they have to really support those people and make them safe,’ he told BBC Breakfast.
‘And it’s not like I’ve brought this up now… I’ve brought this up many times. It’s just because the other stories have come out that mine has actually got listened to.
‘If someone gets an injury like mine, it will affect them for the rest of their life. I’ll never get over this knee injury, I have to deal with that.’
Amanda echoed Will’s calls in the interview with Channel 4 calling for a more open environment where celebrity contestants can voice concerns without fear of retribution.
When talking about what could be improved on the show she said: ‘Allowing people to go and complain that’s the other thing. Being able to voice your concerns if you feel like you are being bullied.
‘If the situation you are in feels toxic or unsafe, having the courage to go and say something is important and we are not cultivating that environment.
‘We are making out that women that voice their concerns about a situations, are trolled through the press, sent rape threats, death threats and are not taken seriously.’
Channel 4 presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy, who interview Amanda today, also starred on the 2023 series of Strictly Come Dancing
Amanda and Krishnan Guru-Murthy pictured following her interview
Abbington was pictured emotionally struggling with the rehearsals during the show
Amanda has not publicly given any examples of Giovanni’s behaviour during rehearsals, however, branded him ‘abusive, cruel and mean’.
Giovanni has constantly refuted the allegations and denied any accusations of threatening or abusive behaviour.
A spokesperson for the dancer said he had provided a dossier of evidence to the investigators and ‘remains fully confident in clearing his name’.
But hitting back at those who questioned Amanda’s alleged experience, the actress said in her latest interview: ‘What happened in that room happened because it happened to me.
‘I am not a sensational person, I am not hysterical, I do not make things out to be bigger than they are. I know what happened in that room was not acceptable.
‘I complained about it and have not been taken seriously.;
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Amanda Abbington is 'encouraging others to rake up dirt on Strictly', BBC insiders claim
She explained that ‘three other women’ had also made complaints with ‘more potentially coming forward’.
‘We have to cultivate an environment when women or men – because it happens to men as well – can come forward and say I’m finding this uncomfortable and something needs to be done about it. And then something be done about it – that’s all.
‘We need to be brave and I want to stand up for any woman who does not have a voice. I will be there for her championing her.’
Amanda insisted throughout the interview that she did not want to ‘bring down’ the show and ‘envies’ those who spoke highly of their experiences.
‘I love Strictly, I would love to have had a beautiful experience on it. I really would,’ she said. I’m envious of the people who had a wonderful experience on that show, I’m so glad they did, and I feel really sad that I didn’t get to fulfil my journey.”
The Channel 4 interview comes as BBC chiefs are said to be furious about the Strictly investigation Amanda’s initial complaint triggered.
One BBC insider told : ‘Amanda seems to be stopping at nothing to make sure that a dark cloud is left over Strictly.
‘She seems to have a real issue with the show. She has been open about not enjoying her time, but why spoil it for everyone else?
‘It’s not looking like there is a smoking gun in her complaint about Giovanni, so now she is getting others to come forward and then later it appears in the Press so the row keeps going and going.’
On Tuesday, the BBC’s director-general Tim Davie warned that the ‘line should never be crossed’ said: ‘I’m very sorry that anyone has had an experience on Strictly that hasn’t been wholly positive .
‘I think that is something we do reflect on, and I’m sorry about that. If someone feels there was something wrong or they wanted to talk about their experience, then, of course, we want them to raise that with us and be in no doubt, we will take it seriously.’
Mr Davie added: ‘Of course, alongside the fun and entertainment, there will be a degree of competitiveness, hard work, and a will to do well. That’s part of what makes this show.
‘But there are limits and the line should never be crossed. We will never tolerate unacceptable behaviour of any kind.’
Fellow Italian dancer Graziano Di Prima was sacked from the programme after he was accused of kicking and spitting at former Love Island star Zara McDermott (pictured together during last year’s competition)
Addressing his exit from the show, a ‘devastated’ Di Prima wrote on Instagram: ‘I deeply regret the events that led to my departure from Strictly’
Amanda said she was ‘glad’ that Mr Davie had apologised to celebrities but added that no producers had been in touch since she made a complaint.
She told Channel 4: ‘I got several messages afterwards from some of the producers, just checking in to see how I was.
‘But then when all the fallout happened, and then everybody started piling on and the death threats came in, and they were reported in the press – and all the misinformation went out there – I didn’t really hear from anybody again.’
Asked if there was any aftercare provided, she replied: ‘No, it would have been nice I suppose.’
Rehearsals for the new series began on Monday, and today professionals including Johannes Radebe, Amy Dowden and Dianne Buswell were all smiles as they arrived to practise at a London dance studio.
In response to Amanda’s latest interview, a spokesperson for the BBC said: ‘Anyone involved in a complaint has a right to confidentiality and fair process and therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further on individuals.’
The BBC continued: ‘However, when issues are raised with us we always take them extremely seriously. The BBC and BBC Studios takes duty of care extremely seriously…last week we announced additional steps to further strengthen welfare and support on the show.’