BBC Strictly Come Dancing pros 'furious and feel hung out to dry' by former partners

Strictly Come Dancing's professional dancers are reportedly furious as a barrage of complaints from past celebrity contestants about their experiences on the show continue to flood the media.

The pros are said to be feeling vulnerable and unprotected, leading to reports that the BBC could be staring down the barrel of a £1 million personal injury claim as more celebrities consider legal action.

An insider told The Mirror: "It's causing untold stress and mental anguish to so many of them as every day there are new accusations. Yes, one or two of the celebs in the last 20 years might have had a bad experience but they are in a tiny minority. The whole thing smacks of ambulance chasing."

There's reportedly a growing desire among the dancers for the BBC to implement psychological evaluations during the casting process.

This is similar to ITV's approach where shows like Love Island conduct "pre-filming psychological and medical assessments including assessments by an independent doctor, psychological consultant and reports from each Islander's own GP to check medical history."

The source continued: "Strictly isn't for everyone and a thorough assessment such as this might prevent people signing up who aren't suitable. It's a tough show and some celebs aren't prepared for what it entails and just want to enjoy the publicity and airtime. Unfortunately it doesn't work like that."

The Strictly Come Dancing scandal has escalated as several professional dancers face backlash. Amanda Abbington sparked the controversy after alleging to the BBC that she suffered five weeks of "threatening behaviour" from her dance partner Giovanni Pernice during the last series, leading to her exit and subsequent PTSD diagnosis.

"I found Giovanni's behaviour unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean. I couldn't sit back and let him do that to other people," Amanda stated.

She further claimed: "I know the BBC knew about Giovanni's behaviour for years, people had complained about him and flagged his behaviour to producers in the past and nothing was done. It wasn't an isolated experience with me."

Giovanni has refuted all allegations of misconduct, with his spokesperson asserting he "remains fully confident of clearing his name". Strictly insiders reveal that although they're not involved in casting, the show ensures an "experienced TV production Psychologist is retained for each series should any contestant require additional confidential mental health support."

The programme has implemented a chaperone system for rehearsals and increased the number of welfare producers to monitor the celebrities.

The BBC said: "As a matter of course, the BBC and BBC Studios take duty of care extremely seriously and our processes on the show are updated every year, and we will continue to keep this under constant review. It is always important to look at whether there is more we should do."