Peter Andre breaks silence on Strictly scandal and says this shouldn’t happen ‘behind closed doors’ as the show battles growing crisis of bullying and abuse claims

Peter Andre has broken his silence on the ongoing Strictly Come Dancing scandal.

The show has been facing a growing crisis in recent weeks, with several stars coming forward with allegations of abuse and bullying from their partners during their time on the BBC show.

The 51-year-old singer, who appeared on the BBC dance show in 2015, has spoken candidly about his personal experiences and admits that these kinds of things shouldn’t happen “behind closed doors”.

Now, writing in his OK! columnPeter said: ‘I’ve read a lot about what’s going on with Strictly at the moment, but I can only really talk about my own experiences of the show.

“I was surrounded by a great group of people. We don’t know what’s true, but accusations are still accusations until proven.

In his column for OK!, the 51-year-old singer said: ‘I’ve read about what’s going on with Strictly at the moment, but I can only really talk about my own experiences of the show.’

‘On the other hand, these things simply shouldn’t be happening behind closed doors. It’s going to be a difficult time for Strictly and for everyone involved.

“The show could be in the spotlight for a different reason this year.”

Strictly is currently facing its biggest crisis in the 20 years since the show returned to the BBC in its current form, with complaints from past celebrity contestants coming in over the past few months.

Professional Graziano Di Prima, 30, was axed from the show last week after allegedly hitting and spitting on his dance partner Zara McDermott, 27, during rehearsals.

Weeks earlier, Giovanni Pernice, 33, was suspended while the BBC conducted an investigation into allegations of behind-the-scenes misconduct by Amanda Abbington, 50, and two other former celebrities.

James Jordan also added fuel to the fire of bullying surrounding Strictly after Steve Backshall complained that his dance partner was “bullying” him during the programme in 2014.

The former Strictly pro took to social media to take a swipe at the seasoned television explorer after it emerged he had complained to the BBC about professional dancer Ola’s “rude and impatient manner”.

The show has been in a growing crisis in recent weeks, with several stars making allegations of abuse and bullying towards their partners during their time on the BBC show

It was followed by Graziano Di Prima’s dismissal last month over reports he verbally and physically abused Zara McDermott during rehearsals. Graziano has apologised for kicking his former partner and added that other allegations do not match ‘how he remembers it’

Responding to a Strictly fan’s disbelief that the hardened explorer – who has dived with great white sharks and wrestled venomous snakes in his career – would be “moved to tears” by the 5ft 4in dancer, James joked: “Please help me!!”

MailOnline has revealed that the show’s presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman may begin the new series with an apology for alleged abusive behaviour by celebrities in a desperate bid to save the show.

BBC bosses are said to be determined to ‘put an end to the scandal immediately’ once it begins in September, with sources saying it ‘can’t start soon enough’.

They said the presenters could be asked to address this at the start of the first show and could even apologise following complaints from Amanda Abbington, Zara McDermott and Steve Backshall.

An insider told us: ‘Strictly is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and it will be a celebration of the show and its history.

‘The BBC wants to draw an immediate line under what has happened. The show can’t start soon enough.’

The announcement comes after rumours emerged that a number of high-profile Strictly contestants have set up a ‘secret support group’ where they share their own horror stories and corroborate each other’s claims.

But Tess and Claudia may not care about Giovanni and Graziano’s sudden departure.

Graziano admits he once kicked Zara during a rehearsal, but Giovanni has called allegations about his teaching methods “simply false.” His supporters say he has high standards.

“The BBC won’t want to be involved in that,” the source claimed.

The series’ launch show, where the couples will be revealed, is scheduled for September 4, with the live shows starting two weeks later.

The program lasts 13 weeks, until the final in December.