Strictly Come Dancing viewers have noticed professional dancer Giovanni Pernice continuing a sweet tradition from his time with former partner Rose Ayling-Ellis. During the results show on 1 October, Giovanni made the British Sign Language gesture for 'thank you' after being announced safe with his current partner Amanda Abbington.
Giovanni and Rose won the competition in 2021, and their partnership was praised for raising awareness of the deaf community. The pair used the sign language gesture each week when they were voted through. Two years on, Giovanni still performs the gesture, which involves tipping the fingers of one hand from the chin downwards.
The moment did not go unnoticed by fans, who took to social media to express their appreciation. One viewer commented: 'Gio still signing “thank you” shows a marvellous character and continued respect for the new fanbase he picked up through Rose. Pure.' Another added: 'Giovanni continuing to sign after being partnered with Rose always gets me.'
Giovanni and Amanda had earlier impressed the judges with a salsa to Gloria Estefan's 'Oye', earning scores of eight from each judge for a total of 32 points. The performance secured them a spot in week three of the competition.
Last year, fans also spotted Giovanni making the gesture, indicating he has maintained the tradition each week. The first elimination of this series saw comedian Les Dennis and his partner Nancy Xu leave the competition after losing the dance-off to Nikita Kanda and Gorka Marquez.
