Vanessa Feltz reveals what it was really like dancing with James Jordan after bullying claims and Strictly scandal
VANESSA Feltz has revealed what’s it was really like dancing with James Jordan after he was accused of bullying on Strictly.
Former show pro James, 46, has been engulfed in controversy over a resurfaced ‘fat jibe’.
The dancer took to social media to defend himself after a clip that showed him calling partner Georgina Bouzova “fat” went viral.
James, who has previously won Dancing On Ice, insisted the viral clip was edited together for It Takes Two for “entertainment purposes”.
Vanessa, 62, previously took part in the eleventh series of the hit BBC competition in 2013 and was partnered with James.
The former TalkTV host was the second star to be eliminated.
Defending James, Vanessa told Closer: “I think people thought James and I – as we’re both big characters – would rub each other up the wrong way, but in fact we got on famously.
“I really wasn’t very good, but James was incredibly patient, never got annoyed, and showed me how to do things 20 times if I’d need to – and even then I’d usually forget it.
“He’d even bring Ola in to help if I still couldn’t get something. And James and Ola are now very good friends of mine.
“In fact, I was one of the first people Ola told when she was pregnant!”
Earlier this month, James spoke out about a video of him calling Georgina “fat” resufaced.
The former show star was seen raging at Georgina as they argued in rehearsals back in 2006.
But James said he has never had complaints from his Strictly co-stars in eight years of being on the show.
His wife Ola has come under fire too, with the BBC show facing its biggest crisis as more celebrities share horror stories from behind the scenes.
It emerged last week that TV wildlife presenter Steve Backshall, 51, lodged a complaint against her back in 2014.
The celeb said he’d found his dance partner to be “rude and impatient” which undermined his confidence.
Ola has yet to respond, but her husband took to Instagram and shared a sarcastic tweet from a Strictly fan this week.
It jokingly suggested that James has been living in fear of his wife.
The person tagged Ola and James, writing: “@The_OlaJordan stands 5’4” tall and weighs the same as a Pringle packet, she can reduce hardened explorers to tears.
“She’s the dance floor assassin @bbcstrictly and we need a fund me page for poor @The_JamesJordan who must live in terror daily.”
James shared a screenshot of the tweet on his Instagram Story and wrote over the top: “Please!!! Someone help me” alongside a distressed face emoji.
The Sun contacted Ola’s representatives for comment at the time.
It is understood that Steve complained directly to a Strictly producer after their Halloween-themed Charleston.
Following this, bosses called Ola in for a meeting and agreed that she and Steve would be accompanied at all times while they remained in the competition.
At the time, Steve spoke about the physical demands of the series.
He told the Daily Mail that he was unable to point the toes of his left foot due to a fused ankle from a near-fatal climbing accident in 2008.
The action star revealed he was in “constant pain” during training and took painkillers every day.
He said: “It has absolutely broken me. You are training all day long on hard wooden floors wearing dance shoes that have no give in them at all, and no cushioning.
“The impact travels straight all the way through my body and I’m just falling apart.”
Strictly Come Dancing‘s bullying crisis was sparked earlier this year when Amanda Abbington, 50, complained about dancer Giovanni Pernice, 33, who has since been suspended.
In later developments, fellow professional Graziano Di Prima, 30, was fired by the BBC following claims he hit, spat at and kicked former celebrity partner Zara McDermott, 27, during rehearsals.
Strictly's Full Scandal So Far
Strictly Come Dancing's scandal has been growing over the past few months, with several major players speaking out about what went on. Here are the key moments of what's happened so far
16th May: Giovanni Pernice sensationally quits Strictly Come Dancing after nine years on the show.
17th May: Giovanni becomes the centre of an official investigation after three former partners – believed to be Amanda Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh – make complaints to the BBC.
16th June: Giovanni releases an official statement vowing to clear his name and denies any wrongdoing.
8th July: Strictly confirms Aljaz Skorjanec will return to the series, replacing Giovanni, after initially quitting the show two years ago.
10th July: Amanda Abbington launches fresh legal proceedings to get the rehearsal footage from her time with Giovanni, after allegedly he refused to release the videos.
13th July: Graziano Di Prima is axed from Strictly for “gross misconduct” after footage of his treatment of Zara McDermott is brought to the attention of the BBC.
Graziano quickly broke his silence, apologising for his behaviour in a statement and saying he “deeply regrets it”, adding his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected his training regime.”
15th July: Strictly bosses implement new duty of care protocols, including having a chaperone present throughout all rehearsals.
16th July: Zara McDermott speaks out publicly for first time. She states while the production team were “amazing to work with”, she found the rehearsal room “completely different”, confirming there’s footage of “certain situations”.
19th July: Anton Du Beke is put under the spotlight for his “1970s attitude” and treatment of female celeb stars, particularly after allegedly referring to 2009 partner Laila Rouass as a “p***” after getting a spray tan.
21st July: Paralympian Will Bayley, who has limb condition arthrogryposis, revealed he was encouraged to leap from a table during a dance routine, despite fears. The stunt caused an injury that forced him to withdraw from the show.
22nd July: MasterChef’s Gregg Wallace admits he broke down in tears and got a nasty stress rash on his face during his time on Strictly in 2014.
22nd July: Despite ongoing issues, the Strictly professional cast begin rehearsals for this year’s series.
23rd July: Celebrity agent Melanie Blake claims she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed pro dancer while backstage on the show, and claims she witnessed ageism, rudeness and a rough treatment to the point of injury.
23rd July: Strictly is forced to beef up security after ‘an intruder scales the wall of the rehearsal studio’.
23rd July: BBC boss Tim Davie breaks his silence on the ongoing allegations against Strictly, saying he is ‘deeply sorry’, adding: “Hundreds of people, be they pros, contestants or crew have been part of it and had a brilliant experience.
“At the same time if someone thinks there was something wrong or they want to talk about their experience then of course we want them to raise that with us. Be in no doubt we will take it seriously, listen and deal with it as appropriate.”
24th July: Strictly 2023 star Krishnan Guru-Murthy holds a bombshell interview with Amanda Abbington on Channel 4 news, where she claims she was bullied, with some of the ‘humilation being of a sexual nature’.
27th July: Laura Whitmore releases a statement regarding her Strictly experience, saying “I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong”.
She adds she is not part of the official complaint, but has come forward to support Amanda with the BBC, alongside others.
28th July: Laila Rouass speaks out against the accusations regarding Anton Du Beke, saying she “never felt pressured” by him and “personally insisted on six to seven hours training a day”.
