Laura Whitmore accuses BBC of ‘gaslighting’ her over Strictly experience

The 39-year-old revealed that she initially raised concerns eight years ago.

The former Love Island host took part in the fourteenth series of the programme in 2016, and was the sixth contestant to be voted out.

The Dublin native joins several other former contestants who have made allegations of misconduct and abuse against professional dancers on the show.

Graziano Di Prima and Giovanni Pernice have both been axed following multiple complaints made against them and, last month, judge Anton Du Beke dragged himself into the scandal after comments he made were deemed 'offensive'.

Pernice was let go from the show after allegations of misconduct were made by his former dance partner and actress Amanda Abbington.

In a lengthy interview with Channel 4, Abbington described Pernice’s behaviour in the rehearsal room as “unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean”. 

The Sherlock actress claimed she was left suffering from PTSD after pulling out of the show, and declared 'I should never ever have danced with him'.

Last month, reality star Zara McDermott accused 30-year-old Di Prima of kicking and hitting her during rehearsals.

In a statement posted to Instagram, the 27-year-old said: "Reports have been made about my treatment on the show and there were witnesses to some events, as well as videos of particular incidents which are incredibly distressing to watch.

"I have wrestled with the fear of opening up – I was scared about public backlash. I was scared about my future and victim-shaming.

"But after a lot of conversations with those I love, I’ve gained the strength to face these fears, and when I asked to speak to the BBC, I spoke candidly about my time on the show."

Now, in an interview with The Irish Times, Whitmore shed light on her own Strictly experience, telling how it's 'all coming out now' amid the flurry of accusations against the show and its professional dancers.

Speaking to Róisín Ingle, the former MTV UK host expressed her relief that all of the "stuff I tried to speak about eight years ago" is finally coming out.

"It’s a shame that it has to come out in such a victim-shaming way, which it always does," she added. "And being the first person to speak up about anything is always hard."

She raised the question as to whether or not she was "gaslit to make it seem normalised", and praised the women who have spoken out thus far for 'pulling people up on things' and making themsleves 'louder'.

Last week, the TV presenter addressed the topic on her Instagram story, writing: "I was trying not to comment on recent press speculation until the BBC review is complete but feel there is a lot of misinformation in the press. I want to help and show support by setting the record straight.

"I was asked to speak to the BBC along with six people that I know of (who deserve anonymity as they don’t want to be dragged through the press), about inappropriate behaviour they experienced similar to mine with the same individual," she continued.

"I initially raised concerns back in 2016. I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong. The aim of this is to show a pattern of behaviour that I believe needs to stop.

"My evidence is to support other people’s experience. It’s a shame it takes this for someone to be heard. I am not looking for anything just an acceptance that what happened to me in the rehearsal rooms during my time on BBC Strictly was wrong and that it won’t happen to anyone else again," she wrote.

"I’ve tried to speak up in the correct way. I know the BBC and all outlets continue to do their best to be better, but for that to happen we must speak up."

It's not the first time Whitmore has alluded to her difficult time on the popular dance show.

In a blog post entitled 'The Movements That Taught Me To Speak Up For Myself' and published to the Huffington Post on 2018, Whitmore admitted that her experience on the programme had left her "broken", and in tears every day.

"I’m still not ready to talk in depth about my experience on the show," she wrote. "I love dancing - I topped the leaderboard twice – but before it even began, I was thrown into the lion’s den and into the middle of someone’s break-up that had nothing to do with me.

"Once again, I was a ‘rumoured love interest’," she added. "I cried every day. And I really was broken, both mentally and physically, by the end.

"To the outside world I tried to suck it up and smile, and I did that to the best of my ability, but it affected me deeply."

She continued: "My friends and family knew that I was struggling. And they were there for me. The media, however, saw me as blonde bait in a sequinned dress."

Last week, oddsmakers in the UK gave a 60 per cent likelihood of the show ending after it's 2024 series.

On July 16 the BBC said it would introduce measures to “strengthen welfare and support” on the show, including a chaperone who will be present “at all times” during training room rehearsals. the systems and processes in place and we are updating and changing it.

“I think we can deliver the show successfully this season.”

The new and purported final series is expected to launch sometime in September.