The ITALIAN job

ANTON DU BEKE and GIOVANNI PERNICE On swapping sequins for Sicilian sunshine...

- STEVEN PERKINS

ANTON & GIOVANNI'S ADVENTURES IN SICILY 

NEW TUESDAY, 9PM, BBC1

TRAVELOGUE (BOX SET, BBC IPLAYER) 

When Giovanni Pernice spots an abandoned umbrella on a table inside Television Centre in London, he immediately picks it up and breaks into a flawless song-and-dance number inspired by the iconic routine from 1952 musical Singin' in the Rain! This impromptu show gets proceedings off to a fun start as TV Times sits down with the professional dancer and his Strictly Come Dancing colleague, judge Anton Du Beke, for an exclusive interview about their new BBC1 travelogue.

The three-part series sees Giovanni introduce his beloved homeland of Sicily to his friend Anton, guiding him around off-the-beaten-track locations and sampling the best local cuisine.

Here, Anton, 56, and Giovanni, 32, tell us what inspired their road trip...

So, what's on the itinerary for Anton & Giovanni's Adventures in Sicily?

GIOVANNI We go everywhere! We went to see most of the places that I used to go to when I was young; I was trying to show as much of my past to Anton as I could.

We visit cities Agrigento and Catania, and the town of Taormina, and we end up in Palermo, which is my home town, and that's where we celebrate my birthday.

ANTON I have been to Italy many times before, but this was my first time in Sicily. In Agrigento, look out for us visiting a lovely amphitheatre. We also camped on the side of Mount Etna, where we had some time under the stars and Giovanni cooked on the barbecue. And we went trekking with alpacas, plus we paddleboarded - appallingly!

GIOVANNI We also played golf...

ANTON You were terrible - but you looked great!