Giovanni Pernice charges £140 for VIP meet and greet amid BBC probe income loss

Giovanni Pernice is seeking new ways to boost his income by offering fans the chance to meet him for £140 on his upcoming Last Dance tour.

This comes after a series of setbacks have cost him an estimated £350,000 in lost TV opportunities due to an ongoing BBC investigation.

The 33-year-old Italian dancer, best known for his dazzling performances on Strictly Come Dancing, is offering the opportunity to take a photo with him and receive a signed print.

This tour, set to span five months and travel across the UK, is Giovanni’s latest endeavor as he navigates the fallout from allegations made by actress Amanda Abbington.

Abbington claimed that Giovanni was "abusive, cruel, and mean" to her during their training sessions—accusations that Giovanni has firmly denied.

The BBC has been conducting an internal investigation into these claims for the past four months, leaving Giovanni in professional limbo.

As a result, he has missed out on several lucrative opportunities, including a potential £100,000 contract to join the Italian dance show Ballando con le Stelle, as well as a £250,000 deal to appear on ITV's popular reality show I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!.

However, both of these deals have been put on hold as the BBC has yet to clear him of the allegations.

A source close to Giovanni expressed the dancer’s frustration with the situation, telling The Mail on Sunday: "Gio was so excited that he was going to keep on dancing, and what made it so much more lovely is that it would have been in his home country.

"But the deadline was looming, and the Ballando bosses just couldn't wait any longer for the BBC to announce their verdict.

"They are as gutted as Gio is. It is absolutely horrendous for Gio. He has been stuck in limbo and has been unable to move on with his life."

The source continued: "He has so many offers on the table, but without the BBC clearing his name, he can't move forward. Nobody can understand why this is taking so long.

"He is losing money hand over fist. He was presented with Amanda's claims weeks and weeks ago, there was nothing there that proved he was a bully, as he has been insisting all along."

The delays have not only cost Giovanni financially but have also left him feeling unfairly treated.

"He has a clear case against the BBC here," the source added.

"They put him in a room with a woman without doing the most basic of checks, which ultimately put him in a position where his career is potentially ruined and his income stream is cut off."

The dancer hired legal firm Schillings in April to represent him following Amanda’s formal complaint to the BBC.