Top celebrity agent claims Strictly pro sexually assaulted her at rehearsals
TOP celeb agent Melanie Blake has claimed that a Strictly pro sexually assaulted her at rehearsals.
The PR guru and author lifted the lid on her backstage experience on the BBC One show.
Melanie explained that she attended the studio a number of times and was left horrified by some of the pros behaviour.
This included one incident where she claimed an unnamed dancer “put her hand on his crotch” after making sexual comments about one of the celebrities – despite being married.
She shared the shocking moment in a lengthy post on her X account along with other claims – saying she witnessed “ageism”.
Melanie wrote: “The following is what I personally witnessed – pro dancers being introduced to their celeb partners being absolutely arrogant and saying they’d either never heard of them (and I’m sure they knew who they had because the ‘meet’ vt is about the celebs surprise at which pro they got – not the other way round – so they clearly couldn’t even be bothered to read the bios.
“Immediate ageism if the female celeb was over 40 – actively saying they wished they had ‘not got an old one’ and ‘I’ll never get her to the final’ – all within in ear shot of the celeb & me which of course was a massive confidence dent before they’d even began.
“Actively – if they didn’t like the partner they had / believe they would make the final – trying to get voted out as fast as possible so that they then could go and do their own work – ie photo shoots and promo about them so effectively ruining the celebs chance.”
She also claimed that one pro had been so “rough” with a celeb that it resulted in an injury prior to the start of the show.
“One incredibly high profile pro being so rough with our client that she was injured before they even began and thus couldn’t enjoy or do her best – same pro wanted to be out to focus on his career,” she went on.
The publicist added: “why no one including me has revealed these things earlier is probably because we don’t want to shatter the illusion of a show so many love – but now I’ve heard what I witnessed wasn’t isolated – I feel it’s only fair to the celebs currently wanting to be believed – that my own actual experience backs up their accounts.”
A spokesperson for the BBC have said: “We will not be commenting on individuals or engaging in speculation.
“However, as we have said previously we will always listen if people want to make us aware of something or raise it with us directly and we have appropriate procedures and processes in place to manage this.”
On Monday, The Sun reported how a number of celebrities who had competed on Strictly over the years had clubbed together in WhatsApp groups to discuss the ongoing scandal.
Giovanni Pernice quit the BBC show after he was accused of clashing with Amanda Abbington, claims he vehemently denies.
Graziano Di Prima was fired earlier this month after it was revealed he had kicked his celebrity partner Zara McDermott.
Insiders said the BBC were looking to shake up the format next year, with a potential cull of some of the professional dancers.
A TV insider said: “There isn’t much they can do to change the line up for this year’s crisis-hit show, but the feeling is that Strictly needs to make a fresh start in 2025.
“There’s the fear that being on the show leaves them more open to feeling entitled and untouchable.
“So for many of the pros turning up for rehearsals this week, it may be their last time.
“It’s not a done deal, and it’s not just going to be a case of the oldest or longest-serving being shown the door. It would be a carefully considered process, with other factors taken into account too.
“The fact that the BBC are even considering making big changes and bringing in fresh blood is a sign of how keen they are to move on and make every effort to ensure nothing like this happens again.
“That could mean saying goodbye to some of the best-known pros — both male and female — but when it comes to Strictly, nobody is ever bigger than the show.”
