BBC Strictly Come Dancing’s Giovanni Pernice sparks concern as he misses opening number

BBC Strictly Come Dancing fans were left worried when they didn't see Giovanni Pernice in the opening dance number on Sunday, however, there was a good reason for his absence.

Fans were puzzled when they couldn't spot Giovanni among the professionals in the opening Wednesday-themed routine, with many sharing their concerns on social media.

One fan tweeted: "The f*** is this?! Where's Giovanni's rightful solo?? #strictly," but another quickly replied that Giovanni had missed the recordings due to an injury.

While others said that their Halloween had been "ruined" over his absence, and another shared that they had been left fuming over the absences of Giovanni, Gorka Márquez and Graziano Di Prima, after their celebrity partners were eliminated from the competition.

It comes after Giovanni had to leave the competition earlier in the week after his celebrity partner Amanda Abbington decided to quit the show.

In a heartfelt message released earlier this week, Amanda wrote a lengthy note but didn't mention her professional partner: "It is with deepest regret that I had to leave Strictly. I did not come to this decision easily or lightly but for personal reasons I am unable to continue.

"It was an absolute joy working with my fellow contestants, they are a beautiful, hardworking and talented group of people who I love and who I will miss seeing every Friday and Saturday and competing alongside.

"I want to thank the incredible Production team and everyone on Strictly who looked after me and who are so kind and caring. It's a wonderful bunch of people and I'll miss all of them. I'm so sad that I am unable to go any further.

"Thank you to everyone who voted and who sent wonderful messages and inspiring support. You are all amazing. Truly. Thank you. xxx."

Giovanni penned a heartfelt message to Amanda, writing: "Amanda … I am so sad we can't continue but I am proud of what we achieved and I am sending you so much love @amanda_abbington74 @bbcstrictly."

Body language expert Judi James has since told The Mirror that it seemed like Giovanni "didn't want to be there" during Sunday night's show.

She said: "Halloween is traditionally Giovanni's biggest week on Strictly, but this time it was more like a personal and professional nightmare.

"Instead of thrilling fans with one of his sensual, spooky routines he was relegated to the back row on the balcony thanks to his partner Amanda pulling out of the competition and his body language suggested a desire to not be there at all.

"The professional dancers usually try to get in shot when they're standing around the current couple after their dance and when they are in shot they keep their eyes on the couple and respond to their reactions.

"Giovanni though did everything to stay out of shot, actually pulling other pro dancers to stand in front of him and when he was visible he looked distracted."

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