Leaving Home at 14 to Pursue Dance Ambitions

Shirley details moving to Yorkshire and London as a teenager, early independence, and seeking greater opportunities.

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Strictly Come Dancing’s head judge Shirley Ballas joins us for an exclusive conversation about her extraordinary life on and off the dance floor. She also reflects on the loss of her brother David, and why she now campaigns to raise awareness around men’s mental health and suicide prevention.

From her early years on a Merseyside council estate to global fame, Shirley shares the resilience, heartbreak, and lessons that shaped her. She opens up about her family heritage, the bullying she endured through school years and beyond, and the sacrifices she made to rise to the top of the dance world. She speaks candidly about her relationships, turbulent love affairs and lifelong struggles with body image. Shirley also takes us behind the scenes of Strictly Come Dancing - from a “disastrous” first audition to navigating the highs and lows of being on one of the biggest shows on television.

Shirley shares:

◽ How discovering her family heritage reshaped her identity

◽ The bullying that left lasting scars - and how she found strength through dance

◽ Walking away from a marriage at the peak of her career - and the regrets that followed

◽ The pressures of body image in the dance world and her experiences with surgery

◽ The moment her Strictly audition went wrong - and how she turned it around

◽ The toll of online trolling and public criticism as head judge

◽ Why championing men’s mental health is so important to her

◽ What happiness means today

Shirley Ballas, We Need To Talk

If you’re struggling, you don’t have to face it alone. We’ve included support charities below:

Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM): https://g2ul0.app.link/npaQKXUV4Wb