Did you see opera singer Wynne Evans place his hand on Katya Jones’s waist on Strictly on Saturday night? And did you then observe how crossly Katya removed the Welshman’s wandering hand? Furthermore, when Wynne tried to give Katya a high five she rebuffed the gesture, which only fuelled speculation that there was something awry in the dance partnership.
Oh, for goodness sake. Look, I know that, with its recent history of scandal, the BBC dance competition is under the spotlight as never before, but this is ridiculous. Pouncing on small physical gestures and blowing them up out of all proportion to feed allegations that Strictly is a hotbed of sleaze, or even abuse, is pure mischief-making.
A few clips shared out of context on social media and, within a matter of minutes, a full-blown There’s No Smoke Without Fire conspiracy theory is on the loose. Clearly acting on instruction from panicking Strictly producers – who don’t need any more bad publicity, thanks – Katya posted a statement on Instagram: “The idea [the hand incident] made me feel uncomfortable or offended me in any way is nonsense.”
But once the rumour mill is printing miles of feverish speculation about “the hand incident”, which wasn’t actually an incident, denials are issued in vain. They can even be seen as an exciting boost to the conspiracy theory. Like a drowning man, the falsely accused would do well to stop struggling and accept his fate, or he will be deemed even more suspicious. This, I’m afraid to say, is the moronic inferno which now passes for popular culture.
Poor Wynne. On his show on BBC Radio Wales, the crestfallen Go Compare star admitted that a running joke with Katya had come across badly. He said it was strange finding himself having to apologise when he’d done nothing wrong. Like Stalin, social media has its show trials.
Here’s my take for what it’s worth. Wynne and Katya are a fantastic pairing, potentially one of the most delightful in Strictly history. An irresistible force meets a (previously) immovable object. The Russian professional dancer – a stern taskmistress who makes Giovanni Pernice look like Paddington Bear – can coax wildly entertaining performances out of the most lumpen specimens (Ed Balls). Katya is clearly delighted that her enormous Welsh teddy-bear is incredibly musical and therefore rewarding to teach.
Wynne, for his part, is revelling in the challenge of becoming lighter on his feet while displaying great dramatic timing. A playful, clever pair who get along brilliantly, Evans and Jones have already surpassed expectations and might even have hopes of making the final. On Saturday, a terrific, characterful tango to “Money, Money, Money” was too soon eclipsed by the hand incident that wasn’t an incident but became an incident.
What a strange organisation the BBC is. Scandals of candyfloss frivolity are treated like homicides (remember the fuss in 2018 when Katya was seen snogging her Strictly celebrity partner Seann Walsh?) while complaints from a frightened family about Huw Edwards sending hundreds of pounds to their son in return for dirty pics are ignored for as long as possible. Gary Lineker tweets political opinions that are offensive to millions of licence fee-payers and hangs onto his vast BBC salary, paid for by those same offended viewers, while Giovanni Pernice is told to foxtrot Oscar before allegations against him by the actress Amanda Abbington have even been investigated.
In the wake of the Edwards debacle, Tim Davie, the corporation’s director general, has banned use of the word “talent” because he says all staff must be “treated equally, regardless of rank”. Last week, the BBC began a major review into its workplace culture, aimed at preventing any “abuse of power” by prominent individuals.
Do we believe him or do star presenters continue to enjoy protected status? Admittedly “talent” is not a word you’d use in connection with Gregg Wallace. The gobby former grocer and Humpty Dumpty look-alike’s main contribution to BBC’s MasterChef is saying, “That’s a luv-vverly play-ta food” while playing the working-class geezer card for all its worth. But there are allegations that Wallace, who presents the show with John Torode, has been the beneficiary of nervous, light-touch management.
On Sunday, The Sun published a story saying that Gregg Wallace was investigated over inappropriate sexual comments to a female BBC staff member back in 2018. He was hauled into a meeting after claims he had boasted about his sex life and took his top off in front of the young woman, “mortifying” members of the production team. Wallace also faced accusations last year that he had spoken to women in a “derogatory” manner while filming BBC’s Inside the Factory.
Wallace responded to the allegations in a filmed statement. “The story that’s hitting the newspapers: this was investigated promptly when it happened six years ago by the BBC and the outcome of that was that I hadn’t said anything sexual. I’ll need to repeat this again. I didn’t say anything sexual. Thank you for your time.”
Personally, I find Gregg Wallace repulsive, and I know I’m not the only one. Funnily enough, Torode’s wife, the actress Lisa Faulkner, told the Cheltenham Literary Festival earlier this week, “Gregg was telling – I’m probably not allowed to say this…Gregg just told rude joke after rude joke to the crew” during her time as a contestant on the celebrity version of the show in 2010. Her husband, who was on stage with her, hastily added: “It’s changed quite a lot really…”
If Katya Jones playfully removing Wynne Evans’s hand from her waist can become “the hand incident” then why are actual incidents brushed under the carpet?
You know something, I’m sick of having to wait until famous, powerful men die before women feel free to speak the truth.
Oh and, if you can, please vote for Katya Jones and Wynne Evans on Saturday. They are such an innocent joy at a time when joy and innocence are in short supply. They don’t deserve those smears which rightly belong to the guilty.