Strictly’s Shirley Ballas nearly quit dancing over ‘threats’ and ‘bullying’

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Shirley Ballas has revealed that she almost quit the world of dancing due to bullying and toxicity.

The ace dancer, 63, faced the career crisis shortly before being offered the role of head judge on the BBC dance series Strictly Come Dancing. Ballas joined Strictly in 2017, replacing the retiring Len Goodman.

Speaking to Lauren Laverne on the BBC Radio 4 series Desert Island Discs, Ballas claimed that men “at the top” of the dancing world had targeted her while she worked as a dance instructor.

According to Ballas, couples under her tutilege would receive “threats”, and warnings that their careers would be damaged if they worked with Ballas.

“I still think bullying goes on,” she said. “There are a lot of great people in my industry, there are a lot of people who want to see people do extremely well. I think we have this handful of misogynistic people with egos that just will not deflate.

“Even the other day, I was reading messages of a couple that had been to a competition overseas, of different professionals that had written these most horrendous messages to them. It still goes on today. I don’t know how people get away with it. It will carry on until it becomes name and shame, and I’m pretty much close to doing that, I’ll tell you.”

Ballas currently heads up the judging panel on Strictly, alongside Motsi Mabuse, Craig Revel Horwood, and Anton du Beke.

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Reflecting on the moment she weighed up leaving the industry, Ballas recalled: “Fortunately something aligned and I got the job on Strictly. So thank you very much to all the bullies in my industry and you know who you are, and everybody in my industry knows who they are – thank you, because you gave me a platform and a job that I sincerely love and adore.

Strictly Come Dancing is currently midway through its 21st series on BBC One. Saturday (9 December) was the semi-finals, and saw contestants Annabel Croft, Bobby Brazier, Ellie Leach and Layton Williams compete for a spot in the final.

During the episode, a choreography blunder saw former tennis pro Croft left spinning on the floor, a moment she said would leave her with a “sleepless night”.

Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday and Sunday on BBC1.