Zara McDermott makes a surprise return to Strictly for the first live show to support her friend Pete Wicks, after breaking her silence over ‘distressing incidents’ with sacked professional Graziano DiPrima

Zara McDermott returned to Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday night for the first live show after speaking about her “incredibly nerve-wracking” moment in the last series.

The former Love Island star, 27, took to the dance floor on Strictly last year before becoming embroiled in scandal after BBC staff discovered footage of her professional partner Graziano Di Prima “physically and verbally abusing” her.

But Zara has clearly put her past experience behind her to cheer on her friend Pete Wicks, who she met through her boyfriend Sam Thompson.

Zara and Sam looked happier than ever as they posed for photos wearing matching T-shirts with TOWIE star Pete’s face printed on the front.

The couple also sported coordinating blue jeans with several photos of Pete and large black letters reading “Vote Pete Wicks” written on the leg.

Reality star Zara and I’m A Celeb winner Sam also sported matching black caps with Pete’s face printed on the front as they posed for a number of photos outside the BBC studio.

Pete is ready to take to the dance floor with his professional partner Jowita Przystał.

Pete signed up for the show just days after it emerged that his friend Zara had been physically and verbally abused by Graziano while on last year’s series.

However, Pete insisted that hadn’t stopped Zara from supporting him, as he told MailOnline: “Zara loves the show and has been very supportive so she’ll probably be my number one fan.”

When it was suggested that Zara could teach him some moves, he joked: “It’s my partner who’s going to teach me everything, so I’m excited to get started.”

Pete had previously spoken openly about how Zara had been the driving force behind his decision to sign up.

During an appearance on ITV’s Lorraine on Monday, he admitted: “Zara was the one who pushed me to do this because she loves the show. I was quite honest about the fact that I’d never actually watched it.

“I first saw Strictly on the first live show last year when Zara was on and I thought, ‘Wow, this is amazing’ but I never really imagined myself doing it. Sequins and all that stuff aren’t necessarily my style.”

He added: “I’m petrified. I’m like a Ferrari from the waist down and a Volvo from above. I have the hips but nothing else.”

Pete’s appearance on Strictly came as a surprise to some viewers, given his friendship with Zara and her boyfriend Sam Thompson, following his negative experience.

However, breaking her silence on Instagram, the documentary maker expressed her support for Pete saying that he “made her very happy.”

Zara reposted the official announcement and wrote: “I’ve never been so excited. I love you.”

In a comment, she added: “This makes me so happy. You’re going to have a blast. I’m so proud of you. I can’t wait to see you with some sparkle and maybe even some shorts.”

Sam also shared: ‘I’m speechless. I’m so proud of you… the content we’re going to create that you don’t even know about yet.’

This comes in the wake of shocking reports that Zara performed on the show with a “broken” leg following an injury in training and needed painkillers to get through the ten-hour rehearsals.

The latest revelation comes after professional dancer Graziano, 30, admitted to kicking Zara during their sessions, leading to him being axed from the BBC series.

There were claims his abusive behaviour was caught on video, in clips which Zara claimed were “incredibly distressing to watch”.

A source told MailOnline: ‘Zara is very happy that Pete has landed the job on Strictly.

“Her experience on the show was very individual – she hopes no one else will go through the same thing again.”

They added: ‘She knows Pete will have a great time and might even impress the judges – he’s incredibly hard-working and a good person, and will thrive in the environment, which can be intense, but he performs best when challenged and under pressure.

‘Zara doesn’t want anything that happened to her to tarnish her career on Strictly and is supporting Pete even if it hits close to home.’

Pete joined Sam in the Strictly studio audience last year and together they wore printed shirts emblazoned with Zara’s face to show their support.

They posed for photographs alongside Zara and Graziano, who has since fled to his native Sicily following his sacking from Strictly.

Reality stars Sam and Pete became friends after appearing on E4’s Celebs Go Dating in 2019 and have since hosted the podcast Staying Relevant together.

In addition to their podcast, the pair’s working relationship sees them pranking each other in viral social media videos based on Sam’s enthusiasm and eagerness to please juxtaposed against Pete’s grumpiness.

Zara often appears in the clips, in which the trio have performed fun dance routines for their huge following.

The sun revealed that Zara needed painkillers to endure ten-hour training sessions after breaking a bone in her leg on Strictly.

A source told the publication that the TV star danced during the show’s Halloween week with a broken leg and that it was “literally a horror in every sense of the word.”

An X-ray revealed severe ligament damage as well as a stress fracture in his left tibia.

Show bosses only learned the full extent of the injury two weeks ago when Zara spoke to private investigators amid the investigation into Graziano’s behaviour.

It is not the only scandal that has affected the program, with Giovanni Pernice being investigated after his famous partner Amanda Abbington accused him of abusive behavior,

The scandal unfolded in January when it was revealed that Amanda had asked BBC bosses for footage of rehearsals after claiming she was suffering from PTSD as a result of appearing on Strictly.

He later claimed that Giovanni had injured his foot during training.

Giovanni vehemently denies the accusations.

The Strictly Come Dancing 2024 launch show will air on Saturday 14 September at 7.20pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.