There may be some big changes on Strictly this year after Shirley Ballas hinted she may leave the panel.
The 62-year-old head judge has revealed the extent of her struggle as she faced vicious trolling on the last series.
In a candid interview, Shirley estimated around one fifth of the thousands of messages she received last year were hateful.
And while she says she loves being on the show, the abuse has left her wondering whether she should return to Strictly.
Strictly judge Shirley Ballas hints she’s leaving
“I felt the abuse snowballed out of control and impacted me in such a negative way,” Shirley told The Mirror.
“That was an all-time low since I joined the show, it was the most negativity I’d ever experienced. The BBC were brilliant, checking in on me and offering counselling and support.”
Adding she was often tearful, Queen of Latin Shirley revealed that she was regularly accused of ageism and sexism by fans.
Will I go back to Strictly? I always take one step at a time.
As Strictly’s head judge, it was often up to Shirley to decide who to send home.
However, many were quick to dismiss her judgements as wrong as she often sent home viewer favourites.
Could Shirley quit Strictly?
Shirley is thought to be renegotiating her contract for the show.
When quizzed on whether she could quit, she replied: “It was a difficult series, I’ll leave it at that. Will I go back to Strictly? I always take one step at a time.”
Shirley joined the Strictly panel in 2017, taking over from Len Goodman.
She is joined by Oti Mabuse, Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke.
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