Greg Rutherford has revealed what surprised him the most after signing up to Strictly Come Dancing as he recalled his time on the show.

The glitzy competition is set to make its hotly-anticipated return on Saturday night after being thrown into turmoil in the wake of a bullying scandal.

It was revealed the BBC had sacked professional dancer Giovanni Pernice earlier this year with numerous allegations of abusive behaviour soon following – which also saw Graziano Di Prima dismissed.

Speaking in an interview with MailOnline, Greg, 37, who starred on the show in 2016 alongside professional Natalie Lowe, spoke about the brutal training hours, which were ‘both mentally and physically tough’ and shared his advice for participants.

‘I’ll tell you what surprised me. What they love to do on that show is tell you, “you’re only needed for a few hours a day and then you’re free.” It was way more!’ he said.

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Greg Rutherford has revealed what surprised him the most after signing up to Strictly Come Dancing as he recalled his time on the show

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Speaking in an interview with MailOnline, Greg, 37, who starred on the show in 2016 alongside professional Natalie Lowe, spoke about the brutal training hours

The Olympian continued: ‘I was in that training room for 10 to 12 hours a day.  If you asked me for my advice I would say, “don’t listen to what they say about timings.”

‘It’s tough on the body both mentally and physically. When you know there’s up to 12 million people a week watching you do something that you’ve never done before. I’d never danced a step in my life, bar of course, at parties.’

Greg, who is working with Marella Cruises to help Brits boost hormones crucial for happiness, recalled how the professional dancers train ‘very differently to how he’s seen in sport.’

‘I was fortunate that I had a very experienced dancer in Natalie we just tried to have as much fun as we could because it was her last season.

‘Of course there is that competitiveness. Nat thought we could push to the final and I was more realistic. It is a fascinating place and outside of the world that I knew. But I just approached it thinking I’m going to work as hard as I can.’

Weighing in on the recent scandals that have marred the competition, he added: ‘It works both ways it’s a very intense show and you have dancers that have a very different view of the world to others.

‘Even me, they train very differently to what I have seen in sport. There are clashes.

‘I can only speak for myself and I feel incredibly sorry for anyone who did have a bad experience. That’s not why you sign up. I hope they have the help and support that they need.’

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Greg shared his advice for participants: What they love to do on that show is tell you, “you’re only needed for a few hours a day and then you’re free.” It was way more!’

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In May, it was revealed that longtime Strictly professional Giovanni Pernice had quit the BBC series, after he was accused of ‘bullying’ his celebrity partner Amanda Abbington

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Graziano Di Prima was later fired by BBC bosses, after it was claimed he’d been ‘physically and verbally abusive’ towards his celebrity dance partner Zara McDermott

Greg added: ‘It’s such a great show it’s a shame that they have had all these problems. I hope everyone is doing what they can to make sure it doesn’t happen again and that everyone is looked after.’

The BBC has since introduced a number of safety measures which aim to ‘strengthen welfare and support’ behind the scenes after battling to save the series.

In May, it was revealed that longtime Strictly professional Giovanni Pernice had quit the BBC series, after he was accused of ‘bullying’ his celebrity partner Amanda Abbington.

Giovanni has faced a wave of scrutiny ever since his dance partner Amanda, who is was partnered with during the last series, dramatically quit the competition last year due to ‘personal reasons’.

The actress is said to have demanded footage of their rehearsals after struggling with Giovanni’s ‘militant approach to training’. She was later diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Amanda is then said to have then met with Laura Whitmore, 39, and Ranvir Singh, 46, for an ’emotional summit’, with the trio apparently speaking about their ‘difficult’ experiences with him.

Graziano has been fired by BBC bosses, after it was claimed he’d been ‘physically and verbally abusive’ towards his celebrity dance partner Zara.

Addressing his exit from the show, a ‘devastated’ Graziano wrote on Instagram over the weekend: ‘I deeply regret the events that led to my departure from Strictly. My intense passion and determination to win might have affected my training regime.

‘While respecting the BBC HR process, I acknowledge it’s only right for the sake of the show that I step away. I am saddened that I wasn’t allowed to offer a quote to the online news stories, and I take on board the sensitivity of the situation.

‘There’s more to this story that I am unable to discuss at this time, but I am committed to being strong for my family and friends. I wish the Strictly family nothing but success in the future.’

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Weighing in on the scandals he added: ‘You have dancers that have a very different view of the world to others. They train very differently to what I have seen in sport. There are clashes’

MailOnline revealed that Strictly production staff raised concerns about Graziano’s conduct last year, but bosses only went as far as to issue quiet warnings to him.

The group expected him to be sacked instantly. They are said to be furious that their complaints were ignored, meaning the abuse towards Zara was allowed to continue.

Graziano was even signed on for the upcoming 2024 series of Strictly.

A source from the show said: ‘There were multiple occasions where both physical and verbal attacks were made. It was more physical than verbal, but all of it was dreadful.’

It was not until staff got hold of a video allegedly showing Graziano repeatedly hitting Zara– nine months after their initial complaint – that he was fired.

Previously, his fans and famous friends had rallied behind him, including fellow Strictly stars Katya Jones, Susannah Constantine and Catherine Tyldesley, who liked and commented on his Instagram post announcing his departure.

A source told The Sun at the time: ‘Gio feels the scrutiny on him has become too much and now is the time to make a fresh start.

‘He wants to focus on other TV projects, and feels he’s achieved all he can on Strictly, having won the trophy back in 2021 and reaching the final an unprecedented four times.

‘He remains adamant he’s done nothing wrong other than being a hard taskmaster, but knows his style of training isn’t to everyone’s liking – especially in this day and age.’

The insider added Giovanni has lots of ‘exciting projects’ in the pipeline which is now his priority.

Amanda is reportedly considering fresh legal action against Giovanni after the professional dancer reportedly refused to release their rehearsal videos.

While the former Strictly star has denied the claims against him, Amanda’s lawyers believe the tapes will support misconduct accusations against the dancer as the BBC continues to investigate.

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Greg added: ‘I hope everyone is doing what they can to make sure it doesn’t happen again and that everyone is looked after’ (pictured on the show with Natalie in 2016)

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The BBC has since introduced a number of safety measures which aim to ‘strengthen welfare and support’ behind the scenes ahead of its return (judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke pictured)

The Sun have revealed Strictly insiders wondered ‘what he had to hide’ after he is said to have blocked the release of training footage with Amanda.

A source told the publication: ‘Amanda and her legal team asked to have access to the tapes. The BBC contacted Giovanni and his legal team to get their consent but they refused.

‘Amanda’s legal team are now weighing up an appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office to get access to the evidence as they think it is vital in helping support her claims.

‘He claims the allegations are false — she insists they will ­validate every one of her grievances. To be clear, the BBC are reviewing the tapes and taking them very seriously. But there are data implications to them ever being leaked so they are in an unenviable position.’