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Shirley Ballas has set the record straight after it was rumoured that she was in a ‘stand-off’ with the BBC over pay.
It was recently confirmed that the 62-year-old would be returning to Strictly Come Dancing for the 2023 series alongside Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke on the judging panel.
However, there was a point when it appeared as though her future of the programme could have been up in the air, opening up about the ‘out-of-control abuse’ that she suffered during the 2022 season.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain on Monday, Shirley – who replaced the late Len Goodman as head judge in 2017 – told co-hosts Ed Balls, 56, and Susanna Reid, 52, that claims that she was embroiled in a row with the BBC over pay were ‘absolutely not true’.
‘First of all, I can clarify that there was no arguing with the BBC over pay. And I want to say particularly… we’re in a crisis, a living crisis, where finances in different homes are very, very difficult,’ she said.
The dance teacher shared that she had a recent encounter with a member of the paparazzi, who questioned her over a supposed £55,000 pay rise, which she refuted.
Shirley stressed that the BBC has taken the cost of living crisis into consideration (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Rex/Shutterstock)
‘This is absolutely not true. So I can honestly say that there are no pay rises, it’s just not true, and no arguing. It is what it is,’ she stated.
‘I think people are vigilant, the BBC are vigilant, we are vigilant, that we are going through a crisis. You look at the nurses, you look at all these people who need the pay rises. There was no stand-off – I don’t know who leaks this information or where the information comes from but it’s absolutely not true.’
The judging panel will be back in full force (Picture: BBC/Guy Levy)
This weekend, Shirley celebrated her return to Strictly, tweeting: ‘Dancing through the years… I am very excited to be back for my 7th series of @bbcstrictly. The best on television.
‘It is an honour to be part of a show like no other. I feel this year will be beyond phenomenal. Expect the unexpected. It just gets better and better.’
During her appearance on GMB, Shirley also revealed that in light of the immense trolling she suffered last year, her son Mark Ballas – who won Dancing With The Stars in the US last year – and a man named Harry would be helping to monitor her channels and filtering out an vitriolic remarks.
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She previously said of the trolls online: ‘Last year I was struggling. It wasn’t just a little bit, it was a lot – the majority of it was in silence.
‘I felt the abuse snowballed out of control and impacted me in such a negative way. I’m a pretty stoic person, and I tend to hold everything in.’
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays from 6am on ITV. Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this year.
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The judge stressed that the cost of living crisis has been taken into consideration.
