BBC Strictly Come Dancing suffers new blow amid 'fix row' as 2024 ratings dip

The BBC has been left rocked after viewer ratings of Strictly Come Dancing faced a huge decline following the accusations of bullying backstage.

The broadcaster was forced to launch an investigation after actress Amanda Abbington claimed she was the subject of bullying by her former dance partner Giovanni Pernice. And shortly after news of her treatment emerged, fellow professional dancer Graziano Di Prima was axed after his treatment of Zara McDermott.

And so now, it has been reported that the number of viewers for Saturday [September 28], came in at 7.1 million which was down from 7.8 million, last year. This came after the show faced a drop in figures after the launch episode the week before.

A TV insider told The Sun: "Strictly is still the most watched programme on a Saturday night — getting double the viewers of its nearest ratings rival. And, although the number watching on catch-up is increasing, the BBC always prided itself on the fact that the dance show offered a shared experience."

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They added: "But it seems fewer and fewer people are now choosing to share it on a Saturday night." The first public vote show on September 28, has now seen a drop in viewing figures of more than 3.5 millions since 2020, when the BBC show attracted 11.8 million views.

Last week's show peaked at 6.7 million viewers which was down from 7.3 million the year before. And this would have been at the time allegations had not reached the crescendo it now has. The launch show reportedly attracted 5.7 million which was, according to The Sun, a million less than the same episode in 2023. And some have attributed the scandal involving Giovanni and Graziano as playing a part in the loss of fans. However, according to the publication, the BBC has not released figures that will show how many people switched to iPlayer instead of watching the live show.

This comes after it was revealed that Giovanni, who has jumped over to the Italian version of the show, wowed judges and fans with his performance. Judges of Ballando con le Stelle scored him a whopping 37 out of 40 points. The investigation has been ongoing for four months after Amanda Abbington claimed Giovanni bullied her during their training sessions. The Italian dancer strongly denies all allegations made against him.

Amanda questioned his teaching methods and described his behaviour as "unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean'. He has strongly denies all of the claims. A conclusion of the investigation surrounding Giovanni's training methods is expected to be released next week. In one interview, Amanda compared the BBC show to "the trenches" as she told Channel 4 News the broadcaster's producers had been left "horrified" by clips that proved her allegations of "humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature." A source reportedly told The Sun that the BBC will notify all parties of the investigation early next week but only a few details will be out in the public domain.

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