Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli has dismissed Nancy Dell'Olio's threat to sue him over comments made on the show as "nonsense".
Dell'Olio stated that she was considering legal action against Tonioli after he quipped that she appeared to have "inhaled two gallons of Veuve Clicquot" for a performance on last year's series.
The Italian entrepreneur also demanded an apology from Alesha Dixon for describing her as "not very feminine".
However, Tonioli has since branded Dell'Olio's warnings as "all talk" and claimed that none of his Strictly comments are ever meant to be personal.
"It was nonsense. Once the performance is over, I don't discuss it. It's nothing personal," he told the Daily Mail. "All the dancers know they'll get hit like a ton of bricks if they try and bring something up with me afterwards.
"I'd only have taken it seriously if it came from my lawyer, and I never heard a thing. It was all talk. And I know more people than she does!"
Tonioli also laughed of Dell'Olio's claim to have been responsible for Strictly's ratings success.
"Oh, she must be joking! She can't mean that seriously," he scoffed. "People have the opportunity to raise their profile through our show. I never played it that way, but good for her. There are people who make careers out of doing that."
