Laura Whitmore 'bombarded Strictly partner Giovanni Pernice with abusive texts saying he was no good' amid fall-out

Laura Whitmore, 31, has been branded a 'bully' amid claims that she and professional dance partner Giovanni Pernice, 26, were bitterly feuding during their time on Strictly Come Dancing.

A source has come forward to tell MailOnline that Giovanni found television presenter Laura 'a piece of work' and a 'cold fish' behind the scenes.

In an explosive insight into their working relationship, the insider went on to accuse Laura of sending abusive text messages to the dancer, undermining his skills.

A source close to Giovanni said: ‘Laura was a piece of work, she really was. She made Giovanni’s life hard. 

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'She was a difficult, cold fish – she was a bully to Giovanni and he behaved like a total gent.

‘Laura sent him loads of texts basically saying he was no good and was not doing anything for her and abusing him.

‘The producers knew how difficult Laura was. Giovanni is just relieved it’s all over. There is no love lost between them!’ 

Laura and Giovanni left in Week 7 of the competition after a bottom two dance-off against Ore Oduba, who is due to compete in the Blackpool stage of the ballroom show next week.

‘Laura is not a very good dancer,' the source continued. 'She was only good when she was in hold so doing the waltz or the quickstep but when she was dancing out of hold, for example the cha-cha-cha you could see she wasn’t very good.' 

Meanwhile, a second source disagreed about the fall-out, telling MailOnline: ‘Gio was quite mean to her backstage and it tainted the whole experience for her.