UNDER-fire Strictly pro Aljaz Skorjanec is being welcomed back to the BBC show because “what happens on tour stays on tour”, it is claimed.
The Sun revealed on Saturday how the star left under a cloud in 2022 after an altercation with a female dancer — still involved with the show — on the programme’s nationwide tour.
But a show source said the alleged incident has been brushed aside because the tour was seen as separate to the main show.
The BBC has said no formal complaints were made about Aljaz at the time.
But the source told the Sun: “Those who raised concerns at the time had been angry Aljaz was brought back for this year’s series, so felt vindicated when the incident was finally exposed.
“So they’ve been totally gutted it seems to have been totally swept under the carpet again.
“The feeling backstage very much seems to be ‘what happens on tour, stays on tour’. People are saying because the tour is run by BBC Studios it’s not the same as bad behaviour on the show.
“It felt bonkers enough that the BBC had replaced under-fire Giovanni Pernice with Aljaz, who left under a cloud.
“But the cast and crew invested in this cannot believe the attitude is essentially that unless it happened on the main show, nobody cares.”
The BBC said it did not recognise the claims against Aljaz. Subsidiary BBC Studios declined to comment.
A show source said that execs expected the same standards of behaviour and professionalism on the tour as on the main show and that they had the appropriate protocols to address and resolve any issues swiftly.
Aljaz is married to ex-pro dancer Janette Manrara, who quit the show in 2021 to become the host of Strictly spin-off It Takes Two.
The crisis is the latest to hit the show. Pro Gionvanni Pernice quit amid bullying allegations, which he denied. Colleague Graziano Di Prima was sacked for kicking celeb dance partner Zara McDermott.
The BBC is due to announce the results of its bullying investigation.
