Shirley Ballas sets the bar high for Strictly
SHIRLEY BALLAS won’t be letting just anybody waltz off with the Strictly prize — as she reckons they’ve had ‘weeks to prepare’.
The show’s new head judge revealed her tough line when asked whether she’d go easy on any dancers without previous experiece.
‘No, no, no,’ she told ITV’s Lorraine, ‘because you come into the show, you understand about what you’re signing up for I imagine. They have several weeks to prepare.’
Upping contestants’ anxiety levels still further, she added: ‘I’m expecting quite interesting things from the very beginning.’
Her words will do nothing to reassure The Saturdays singer Mollie King, who revealed her biggest fear is taking a tumble.
Meanwhile, fellow contestant Susan Calman was fighting off controversy today after some people expressed disappointment that she’s dancing with a man.
While the name of her dance partner will be revealed tomorrow night, the gay Scottish comedian has already said she’ll be getting a ‘dance boyfriend’.
Responding robustly to critics, she said: ‘I wanted to dance with a man. I am not being held hostage by the BBC. I’m still well gay and proud of it.’
Strictly Come Dancing starts this Saturday at 7pm on BBC1
Author: Anna Thomson
