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"Strictly Come Dancing" has been the BBC's flagship
entertainment show for 20 years, and the format has been sold
around the world under the banner of "Dancing with the Stars".
However, its reputation as a joyful and glamorous show,
featuring celebrities paired with professional dancers to learn
new routines each week, has been damaged by allegations of
bullying and poor behavior behind the scenes.
"I'm very sorry that anyone has had an experience on Strictly
that hasn't been wholly positive," Director General Tim Davie
told reporters. "I think that is something that we do reflect
on, and I am sorry about that."
He said there had clearly been issues, specifically around
training sessions, that needed to be addressed, and the
broadcaster had introduced new measures to do so.
The BBC said last week that a member of production staff would
be in every training session as a chaperone. That followed the
departure of two professional dancers - Giovanni Pernice and
Graziano Di Prima - from the show in recent weeks.
Pernice has denied any accusations of abusive or threatening
behavior. Di Prima's spokesperson told BBC News the dancer had
kicked his partner Zara McDermott, a presenter and media
personality, last year, and had apologized.
Davie was confident the show would return in the autumn.
"This show is about fun and entertainment primarily," he said.
"But you've got competitive individuals, often sports stars,
others, professional dancers, who want to win."
It was incumbent on the BBC to manage that competitiveness, he
said.
"And if people go over the line, we have the systems and the
processes to deal with that," he said.
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Alison Williams)
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