Giovanni Pernice has addressed his earlier than expected exit from Strictly Come Dancing with a message to celeb partner Richie Anderson as fans have hit out at Sunday's result on their behalf.
It's been nearly 12 months since Italian pro dancer Giovanni took home the Strictly Glitterball trophy alongside Rose Ayling-Ellis, with the EastEnders actress making history as the BBC show's first deaf contestant. Giovanni and Rose bowled over both the judges and fans with their performances, most notably their Couple's Choice routine to Clean Bandit's Symphony, which saw them dance to 10 seconds of complete silence, in support of the deaf community.
Last year was Giovanni's first win on Strictly, after previously making the final with Faye Tozer in 2018 but his hopes of doing well in the ballroom this year have been extinguished already, after he and Radio 2 and One Show Richie became the second couple to be given the chop from the new series.
