Strictly Come Dancing winners Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice once had such a close bond - and fans even speculated they were an item. Who can forget the iconic moment the pair lifted the glitterball trophy back in 2021, making former EastEnders star Rose the first deaf contestant to ever appear on the BBC show, let alone win it. Their silent dance as a tribute to the deaf community was later named TV Moment of the Year.
The dance partners went on to delight fans on the Strictly tour and often posted pictures and videos of each other on their social media pages. They reunited in 2022 to raise awareness for those suffering from mental health, releasing a beautiful black and white photo for a thought-provoking campaign.
Rose, 30, even visited 34-year-old Giovanni in his native Sicily, where she was introduced to the star's sister Angela on Gio's BBC One travel show, which he hosts alongside Strictly judge Anton Du Beke. But Rose hasn't showed any trace of Giovanni on her Instagram since May 2022, when she and Gio got glammed up to attend the Virgin Media British Academy Television Awards.
This has prompted fans to speculate that the once 'best friends' strong bond is broken. As Giovanni gets set to return to TV this weekend for the Strictly Come Dancing 20th anniversary special, here we look at what went wrong... Gio was dropped from Strictly while a BBC investigation into his alleged behaviour was carried out following claims brought by his former dance partner Amanda Abbington.
