'I still love him very, very much': Georgia May Foote SPLITS from boyfriend and ex-Strictly dance partner Giovanni Pernice
Georgia May Foote and Giovanni Pernice have split up - less than a year after confirming their Strictly Come Dancing romance.
The pair - who met when they were partnered on the dancing show in 2015 - have called time on their romance, Georgia announced on Twitter on Saturday.
The news comes after the actress confirmed that she would feel jealous when Giovanni was partnered up again this year, though the duo insist that there is no third party involved in their separation.
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Split: Georgia May Foote has ended her relationship with boyfriend and ex-Strictly dance partner Giovanni Pernice
She wrote: 'It is with great sadness we have decided to split up. There is nobody else involved.
'Although it was not an easy decision to make, sometimes you realise that it is better to be friends and this is one of those times.
'We both have very busy work schedules for the rest of the year so we are both going to focus on our upcoming work projects and we wish each other well for the future.'
Giovanni retweeted the message on his own account.
Single: Georgia confirmed that she still loved her ex 'very, very much' in a string of tweets
Announcement: Georgia made the announcement on her Twitter page using a notepad feature
Support: It was accompanied by a tweet that thanked her fans for their support
A lot of love: Georgia reminded fans that her love for Giovanni was genuine
In a second post, she wrote: 'Nothing i ever said about my feelings to gio were fake before people start. I still love him very very much. But things change.
'Please be respectful to me at this time by not saying awful things. This is a hard time for me.'
Georgia was originally dating her Corrie co-star Sean Ward, who plays villain Callum Logan, until December 2015.
The couple had been together for around five months when they were forced to laugh off claims that her relationship with dance professional Giovanni was growing stronger, especially when they shared a kiss on one live show.
Georgia and Giovanni finished as runners-up on the dance competition, losing out to The Wanted's Jay McGuinness.
Honest: Georgia revealed this month that she was likely to get jealous when Giovanni was teamed-up with a new partner in Strictly
Theirs became just one the show's now famous partner romances, and her relationship with Sean fell foul of 'the Strictly curse' as it fell apart shortly after the final.
Hinting that she was concerned about Giovanni getting close to another woman on the dance floor, Georgia revealed earlier this month that she was likely to get jealous when he was teamed-up with a new dance partner in 2016.
Speaking to OK!, her comments come ahead of the BBC1 show's new season, which will launch in the autumn.
She said: 'Of course I'll get jealous. Whoever Giovanni gets is a very lucky girl. He's a great teacher.
'[But]I'm excited for whoever he gets and, yeah, he's a great teacher, so I'm happy for him. I think it's fine.'
'But at the same time, I don't envy them. It's such hard work.'
Love at first sight: Georgia and Giovanni met whilst filming Strictly Come Dancing in late 2015 (here on tour in January)
In March of this year former Coronation Street actress Georgia praised Giovanni for helping her through some tough times.
She said: 'Gio is my best friend and he helped me through a lot.
'He's the best thing that has ever happened to me. I'm in a very good place now. I've got good people around me.
'It's something that just happened, I didn't get a chance to look at him that way while I was on the show. It was a friendship that blossomed.'
Although Georgia did not go into detail about what exactly Giovanni helped her through, she could be referring to drama with her ex-boyfriend Sean.
Green-eyed monster: Speaking to OK! , her comments come ahead of the BBC1 show's new season, which will launch in the autumn
Looking good: It's no surprise Giovanni fell for the brunette beauty, who epitomizes glamour
It has been claimed that her relationship with Sean ended in dramatic fashion when he reportedly flew into a jealous rage on the night of the Strictly final.
The former Corrie co-stars are said to have become embroiled in the heated row over her relationship with Giovanni, who she started dating after the show ended.
According to The Sun, when all the contestants were staying in the Village Hotel in Elstree, Hertfordshire, Sean is claimed to have 'thrown Georgia around' before smashing her iPhone and breaking a wall.
A source told the publication: 'Sean went absolutely mental and Georgia was left terrified and covered in bruises.
Strictly curse: Georgia was originally dating her Coronation Street co-star Sean Ward (here in October 2015) until December last year
'After the final, Georgia and Sean went back to her room. He was acting very strangely and started a huge fight... He flew into a jealous rage and started smashing everything up. He was also really cruel to her, calling her names.
'It was a messy affair. Georgia was incredibly upset and grateful that her cries had been heard. Georgia absolutely adored Sean but he grew more and more controlling as the relationship went on.'
Fortunately, it seems that she has managed to move on from the alleged incident.
During an appearance on Lorraine in May, Georgia couldn't help gushing about her partner, even admitting she was learning Italian for her man.
'My boyfriend is Italian, so I'm trying to learn a little bit,' she said. 'Even if we didn't end up together, he would be my friend for life. I know it's cringey to say but we're like one big happy family.'
Breaking it off: Their relationship fell foul of the Strictly curse when his jealousy reportedly came between them
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