The BBC dancing show was also hit by a bullying scandal last year
STRICTLY Come Dancing has lost its top talent executive after the Wynne Evans row rocked the show.
Long-serving celebrity booker Stefania Aleksander has left her full-time role after seven years, having also been mentioned in the BBC investigation into pro Giovanni Pernice’s alleged bullying of dance partner Amanda Abbington.
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Strictly’s Stefania Aleksander with comedian Seann WalshCredit: Social Media – Refer to Source
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Stefania has left her full-time role after seven yearsCredit: facebook
Stefania has been replaced by long-standing staffer Jasmine Fox and will now be working on ITV’s Soccer Aid.
But BBC sources insisted her departure as celebrity talent executive was not connected to any of these issues.
One told The Sun on Sunday: “Stefania worked on the series for a long time and she came under increasing pressure over the last couple of years.
“There was the fallout over Seann Walsh and Katya Jones being seen kissing, then the bust-up between Giovanni and Amanda, then the Graziano Di Prima and Zara McDermott kicking incident and finally the fallout over Wynne Evans making sexual comments.
“It’s not that these situations were Stefania’s fault, but they happened during her tenure recruiting the celebrities.”
The source added: “Stefania’s name was mentioned numerous times during the BBC investigation into Amanda’s claims about Giovanni bullying her.
“It was apparent to BBC investigators that she was the first person Amanda would complain to over Giovanni’s behaviour. She was the main point of liaison between them.
“The show recruiting Wynne Evans came to be viewed as a poor signing because of the problems with him. There’s been a lot of discussion behind the scenes at the BBC over how that came about.”
A BBC Studios spokesman said: “Stefania remains a pivotal member of the Strictly production team, has already been involved with the upcoming series, and will return to work part-time on the show later in the summer.
“She stepped away from what is a full-time role to spend more time being a new mum and to suggest she has temporarily left Strictly for any other reason is false and unfair.”
Wynne was axed from the Strictly tour earlier this year when a video emerged of him making a vulgar comment.
Stefania came under fire in 2019 when The Sun revealed she posted a joke about cocaine on social media.
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