Strictly’s Luba Mushtuk and Jowita Przystal give update on professional line-up for next series after Giovanni Pernice sparked rumours he could quit amid Amanda Abbington feud

Strictly Come Dancing stars Luba Mushtuk and Jowita Przystal gave an update on the professional line-up for the next series during an appearance on BBC Breakfast on Monday.

It comes days after Giovanni Pernice sparked rumors he could quit the hit show following his row with Amanda Abbington over his training style – despite the BBC fully backing him.

In conversation with presenter Sally Nugent, Luba and Jowita talked about the next series of the dance competition – despite it only starting in September.

When asked if they will return, Jowita says: ‘Hopefully we will be back, we don’t know that yet. You’ll have to watch to find out’.

Luba added: “Numbers crossed, it’s very exciting.”

The dancers will hit the road again next month, on May 1, for their Strictly Professionals tour.

Jowita said: “We are very excited to get back together with the pros. It’s a lot of fun, we’re like a family, brothers and sisters.

“To be able to put on a beautiful show and share the stage with some of the best dancers in the world, they are the best.”

Notably, Giovanni is not part of the lineup, which includes Dianne Buswell, Vito Coppola, Carlos Gu, Karen Hauer, Neil Jones, Nikita Kuzmin, Gorka Marquez, Luba, Graziano di Prima, Jowita, Michelle Tsiakkas and Nancy Xu.

Giovanni is currently busy starring in his own show, Let Me Entertain You, which ends in Woking on April 30.

The update comes days after Giovanni named his 2025 tour Giovanni: The Last Dance, sparking speculation about his time on Strictly.

The name of his tour has terrified fans into believing it could be his final series on the BBC programme.

A source said The mirror: ‘It’s no secret that the past few months have been difficult for Giovanni. The name of his show in 2025 will definitely get the rumor mill spinning.”

Another source told the publication that the name of Giovanni’s tour was planned long before Amanda left the show.

Amanda, 52, quit mid-series last year for ‘personal reasons’ amid claims of a feud between her and the dancer, 33, before reporting that she had demanded footage of their rehearsals after the experience in the competition left her with PTSD had left behind.

But despite fresh allegations that he left a fourth celebrity in tears, MailOnline revealed that the BBC were ‘totally’ supporting Giovanni and that he would return to the show later this year after the broadcaster offered him a new contract.

The allegations, attributed to sources close to his most recent dance partner Amanda, made it clear that Giovanni was “abrasive” with his partners and had reduced some to tears.

While strict insiders agree Giovanni pushes his partners hard to give them the best possible chance of winning the glitterball, they insist he is not a bully.

And that is why, despite the accusations of Amanda and three of his former partners, Giovanni was “offered a contract” during the meeting, which he immediately accepted.

“He’s excited,” an insider said on the BBC One show. “While there are still dots and crosses that still need to be written, it all seems to be happening for him.

‘As it’s the 20th anniversary, it’s a big year for the show and everyone involved wants Giovanni to be part of it.

‘It’s been a very difficult few months for him. It’s been really tough being confronted with such claims but not having anything to respond to.”

Both the BBC and Team Giovanni say this is not the case officially complaints about his behavior

One source even described the claims as a ‘nasty witch hunt’ which could not only have ended his Strictly TV career but also jeopardized his place on the international ballroom dancing circuit in general.

It all started in January when the Sun reported that former Sherlock star Amanda had asked the BBC for CCTV footage of the pair rehearsing. She claimed to have suffered from ‘post-traumatic stress disorder’ as a result of her appearance on the program and was considering legal action.

Bosses at both Giovanni and Strictly believe the story was leaked by friends of Amanda, who has never made any comment on the matter.

Despite numerous stories that she and Giovanni did not get along during the series, she insisted at the time that they were the best of friends.

The row broke out again three weeks ago after the Sun reported that Good Morning Britain’s Amanda Ranvir Singh and TV presenter Laura Whitmore – both of Giovanni’s former Strictly partners – had met to discuss their own ‘difficult’ experiences with him.

This led to “tears,” according to sources close to Amanda, who shared details of the meeting.

Despite Giovanni’s friends dismissing the story as ‘three women meeting for a coffee and a moan’, the dancer was once again left ‘appalled’ by the messages.

The lack of evidence and the fact that Amanda had told bosses before the end of the series last year that she was leaving Strictly for another medical reason left them with nothing to formally investigate.

“The BBC fully supports him,” says an insider at the broadcaster. ‘There have been no complaints about Giovanni’s behaviour, no one has actually spoken out and said ‘He did this to me’ or ‘He did that to me’.

“Nothing has come to light about any of these people and it feels very unfair to judge someone and potentially dump someone from their job because of what is in the red tops.”