Afternoon Ochre I totally agree. It isn't the first time that we've seen unsubstantiated rumours of a very serious nature repeated as if they are "the truth" and it is very wrong. I feel desperately for Laura, what a negative experience she has had.

Afternoon Lou and Ochre

OK magazine have another 'cozying up' story based on two people standing next to each other

http://www.ok.co.uk/celebrity-news/9...y-foote-split?

That's Luba Mushtuk, I think, (might be wrong, anyone?) so they were probably simply waiting for transport outside the hotel...

The write up of the Gio interview has been very kindly done by the GG thread. Nice to hear that his dad is his number one fan.

Totally agree!

Thanks for that link M'Lady There is a very funny quote in that article but I really oughtn't (is that a word?) quote it here as it's not exactly in the spirit of appreciation threads

The only other take-away from the Radio Soho interview was that Gio's comments about the Strictly tour 'we don't know yet.. it is announced in a couple of weeks' are consistent with him being signed up to do it. Its the sort of language he used after signing a contract for this year's Strictly.. but before the official announcements were made.

Just my interpretation.

Nice picture of Amanda Ursell, the nutritionist who is helping Aldo Zilli lose a kilo or two, with Aldo and Gio. Amanda had some sensible things to say about nutrition on that interview.

https://twitter.com/AmandaUrsell/sta...77008900554752

BIB - Totally agree with you on that one. Really feel sorry for her. I also believe in Karma, so whoever will get their's.

I think Laura was wrong not thank Giovanni. If she believes in kindness, she would have thanked him. It's easy to be kind to the people who are nice to you, the reverse is hard and those are the people I call kind hearted. I am far from that.

I am hoping that a little bit of time, some rest and some outside perspectives might help bridge the gap between them. Would be nice to end on friendly, civil terms by the time the Strictly Final rolls round.

I am also thinking about Brendan/Anastacia, Naga/Pasha, Will/Karen as well as Laura/Gio. The producers are going to need a diplomatic bag to sort this out at the current rate!

Best not to believe everything you read in the tabloids. At best the stories are exaggerated. I think it was obvious that things were cool between Brendan and Anastacia in their final ITT interview but they are both professionals. I could see no evidence of a rift between Laura andGiovanni in their final interview in spite of the stories. I think Will had a problem with the stress of it all which is not a new experience for him. Not sure if he will be back for the final. .Naga and Pasha while they won't be on each other's Xmas Card list they will not have a problem for the final. Both are professionals too.

You are right Issfan - the group dance on the final is normally a bit of a jolly anyway so I'm sure all will be well.

Absolutely. They will just all enjoy being back together. It will be a bit bit like the last day of school. A bit of fun before they all go their separate ways.

Sometimes the emotion and I expect the disappointment of going home makes you behave in a uncharacteristic way. I wouldn't read too much into it or judge Laura too harshly. I think she was struggling to hold herself together. Not everyone can say the right things under those circumstances.Hopefully she thanked him properly in private.

I have to disagree there Sarah. I think Laura's kindhearted through and through. She won't be walked over though and I very much respect her for that too.

Laura was professional at the time of their exit and that's enough. Why should she now thank the man who could have laid unfounded allegations to rest with one tweet but chose not to.

I have no doubt she will be professional again with Gio for the Final but also truly enjoy being back on the show with the genuine friends she made there.

Sorry Issfan . I was not judging her, I was just disappointed that she didn't thank Giovanni.


I am still a fan of Laura's. Like I said before, it's easy to be kind to people who are nice to us, but the reverse is hard and I call those people kind hearted. I just think
sometimes it's pays to be humble and show gratitute, never hurts to be grateful.

I have no doubt that these allegations are lies and I do want Laura to stand up against them, but I wish she had handled it differently. Just my opinion.

I see Gio's quickly tweeted OK mag to shoot down the rumours about him and Luba in the above article. Someone in his private life he doesn't want upset?

Yet couldn't take the time to tweet in support of Laura regarding serious unfounded allegations that could affect her reputation and career.

Clear where his priorities lie.

Laura's been caught in the middle of other people's personal issues that had absolutely nothing to do with her, now those people have already moved on . . . yet she doesn't get another go at Strictly does she.

I think the BBCand Gio handled the text messages properly. The story appears to have died. I suspect the tabloids involved recerived a letter via the legal department of the BBC. If you respond to that kind of rubbish it just makes more headlines.

What happened??

The reverse is hard and I think that's how she was acting through most of her Strictly run but there's always a limit if your kindness isn't returned. In spite of everything Laura tried to make the best of the situation she was in and I think the fact that she did struggle with it so much shows how kind and conscientious she is. A cold person wouldn't have cared.

Laura has said on numerous occasions how grateful she was to have the opportunity to learn to dance and has thanked Gio, both on the main show and in a press statement after their elimination. That's enough in my view, especially in the light of the last few days.

Allegations like these will never die down, really sad.

Yet a lot of people believed what they read, like I say mud sticks.

I don't see the situation as having been dealt with properly, they hung her out to dry. In the long term I hope it won't affect her career though because Laura's feisty, is already standing up for herself, she's hardworking and super talented and has many colleagues who appreciate her worth and big heart.

BIB - Totally agree with that. I am sure she will be fine.

I seem to spend a lot of time defending Laura and Giovanni these days. I apologise in advance if I upset anyone but I feel I need to get this off my chest. This negativity all started because Giovanni ended a relationship that was not working for him. Fact. People do that all the time. None of us would want to be in a relationship that no longer works for us. It is his choice, his life. I am sorry to be blunt but his romance although it felt like a fairytale to many because of Strictly we must remember it was real life. Two people who did fall in love then one decided that they wanted to move on. There was no one else involved. I feel Giovanni is getting a rough ride because of this which is unfair.

The allegations made against Laura are very serious. The article linking Giovanni with the brunette in Blackpool was lightweight. The two are very different. Although no one can take those awful lies about Laura back I think the BBC have taken action via their legal dept. and I think Gio was told not to speak to the press. I can understand Laura's reaction but I am surprised she was not told to stay quiet too. You cannot win by responding to the tabloids. The story just gets repeated. These awful lies have not been repeated so I suspect the tabloids have been warned off.


The article about Gio today was typical. After mentioning the brunette with Gio it went on to repeat old stories. It covered his romance with Georgia and the stories suggesting Laura and Giovanni were more than dance partners. It showed Laura and Gio rehearsing one of the raunchy bits of the salsa and finally listed couples hit by the Strictly curse. Typical of the tabloids. Everything is repeated again and again and again. However the allegations against Laura are much nastier and should never be repeated. There was only one way to deal with them.

As for Giovanni tweeting about the article in OK. Not like him but I am sure he has his reasons and perhaps one day we may find out. It made me smile though.

BIB
It's their Appreciation thread, so no need to apologise.

As I've said before - when I see anonymous, unsubstantiated allegations in a tabloid, I consider them as having no merit. That is where I start and I'm still there, because here hasn't been any reason to change.

I enjoyed Laura and Giovanni's time on Strictly and have no reason to think any different about either of them. I expect there to be differences and issues on Strictly, because I see it as a testing situation and I'm happy with how they dealt with it. Like you, I take their final ITT interview as how they chose to finish their Strictly time together and it was a good ending.

I feel exactly the same. Just trying to think on the positive side of their partnership.

However I do feel Laura and Giovanni were given a rough time all because he broke off a relationship prior to this year's show starting. Absolutely ridiculous.

BIB - Totally agree with you, this is a common thread and no one should ever have to apologise for voicing their opinions.

I loved their partnership and I still believe Laura had the potential to be the best female this year. I just want this sorted out. I don't for a minute think there was any bullying, I can see people wanting to bury Laura and creating stories, but this is very low. I just don't know why BBC can't release a statement, they did for Clifton,
why not for Whitmore???. I guess not important enough.

I don't care what these idiots do, I want Laura to be nice, except to Daily Fail.

Hi Hugh . The problem is unless it's cleared up, it will affect Laura in the long run.

I hope she stays positive.