Strictly Come Dancing professional Janette Manrara has revealed the text message she sent to Will Bayley after he made bombshell allegations about his time on the show.
Strictly star Janette Manrara has shared the blunt message she sent to her ex-dance partner Will Bayley after he spoke out about his time on the show.
The Paralympian suffered a life-changing injury during their stint on the BBC show back in 2019.
He said that despite expressing concerns, he was encouraged to perform a jump which he severely injured himself attempting – a jump that Janette had reportedly dismissed as “rubbish” during rehearsals.
Addressing her interaction with Will after his comments, Janette admitted she reached out to him via text.
“I messaged him [Will] because we are really good friends. He immediately said: ‘I’m so sorry, it’s not meant to look like that. I don’t want you to feel like it’s you,” Janette confessed to The Sun.
Discussing her time dancing with Will, Janette expressed: “I enjoyed dancing with him so much. It’s the only time I’ve actually ever cried on Strictly, when we did our Couple’s Choice. It was a dedication to Great Ormond Street Hospital.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Janette admitted she wasn’t “shocked” about the recent allegations surrounding the show.
She stated: “Yes and no. I was shocked, because you just never want to hear that. But it is a dance show, it gets physical and it is a competition. There is intensity that sometimes happens in the rehearsal rooms. Everybody wants to do their best. Every professional pushes themselves, but it should always be in a positive way.”
Will, who suffers from a congenital limb condition, had accused Janette of disregarding his concerns about a jump in one of their routines. He claims he informed Strictly officials that jumping was not feasible for him due to the absence of ankles.
Despite his reservations, Will was pressured to perform a leap from an elevated platform as the stakes in the competition increased.
Recounting the incident to the aforementioned publication, Will said: “A table for me to jump off was brought out and I said, ‘I’m not sure I can land safely’. Everyone assured me I would be fine. I didn’t want to do the jump, and my coach said before, ‘He can’t do jumps’.
“We practiced a few times and I was really careful. But then Janette said my jump was ‘rubbish’ and I needed to smile more and go for it and show a bit of passion.”
Driven by determination, Will attempted the jump with enthusiasm, only to experience excruciating pain upon landing. He recalls: “I was really determined, so I went for it and smiled at the camera. When I landed I just had the most horrific pain. I still have flashbacks now.”
He revealed that the injury from the jump left him in a state of depression, confined to his bed and ultimately ended his sports career.
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Source: New York Post
