Graziano Di Prima has begun work picking grapes in Italy following his departure from Strictly Come Dancing.
The professional dancer has left the UK and is now based in his native Sicily with Giada Lini, who he married in 2022.
After his sudden exit from the BBC series following allegations of ‘physical incidents’ during his training with Zara McDermott, the 30-year-old is making £6 an hour doing the farming job.
After his career switch was originally reported by The Sun, a friend of Di Prima told Metro.co.uk: ‘Graziano is trying to find some peace away from what’s happening so he’s reverted back to his roots as he comes from an agricultural background. It’s hard manual labour in the fields, but it’s what he wants to do.’
They continued: ‘Taking the job isn’t about the £6 per hour, but it’s about getting away from everything. The past few weeks have had a profoundly negative impact on his mental health, and the work is almost meditative while he deals with the stress.
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‘Graziano isn’t making excuses for his behaviour. He’s a good man, who’s done something wrong. He’s apologised and wants to move on with his life.’
‘He says he is literally living next to some cows,’ a source added to The Sun.
Graziano has been in the UK since beginning his Strictly career in 2018, with his first celebrity partner being TV and radio presenter Vick Hope. He went on to be partnered with Loose Women star Judi Love and Coronation Street actress Kym Marsh.
It’s been alleged that Di Prima ‘kicked and hit’ his 2023 partner McDermott while they were rehearsing for the ballroom and Latin show. Di Prima said he ‘deeply regrets the actions’ that led to his departure from Strictly. ‘My intense passion and determination to win might have affected my training regime,’ he admitted.
The BBC confirmed his exit from Strictly last week in a statement which read: ‘We can confirm that Graziano Di Prima is no longer a part of the line-up of professional dancers for the upcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing.
‘While we would never comment on individual cases, it is well-known that the BBC has established and robust duty of care procedures, and if issues are raised we will always take them seriously and act swiftly as appropriate.’
McDermott has returned to work shortly after speaking out on the incident for the first time. She said videos of ‘particular incidents’ were ‘incredibly distressing to watch’ and thanked BBC for their ‘swift action’.
Now, she’s focused on more positive things in her life – spending time with her partner Sam Thompson, and making more documentaries.
After posting a picture of herself smiling and holding a film camera on Instagram, some of her two million followers flooded the comment section to express how ‘proud’ they are of her.
At the BBC, there is also an investigation being conducted into the behaviour of ex-Strictly star Giovanni Pernice, who was labelled ‘nasty’ by his former partner Amanda Abbington, who withdrew from the competition prematurely last year.
Pernice, 33, said that he looked forward to ‘clearing his name’ as he rejected ‘any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour’.
Strictly are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, but their celebratory content may now need to be reassessed.
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Metro.co.uk has contacted Graziano Di Prima’s representatives for comment.
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