Shirley Ballas has opened up about splitting from her partner, Danny Taylor, as well as her dating life and failed marriages.
The Strictly Come Dancing judge, 64, has been married twice in the past. However, following her latest breakup, Shirley vowed never to marry again.
The pro dancer has discussed her issues with intimate relationships, which trace their roots back to her childhood without a “stable” father figure.
Shirley Ballas’s ‘disastrous’ dating life amid split from partner Danny
The Strictly judge was on the Great Company podcast when she spoke about her split from her last boyfriend Danny Taylor, reports The Sun. Confirming that she’s “just split” with her former boyfriend, the dancer confessed: “My relationships have been a disaster, all the way along the line.”
However, she’s “grateful” to have her mother Audrey, 87, a “staple” in her life. “No friend, no marriage, no nothing,” Shirley said.
Then I’ve had a couple of boyfriends, and that all ended in disaster
She was first engaged to Nigel Tiffany at 16 but married her dancing partner Sammy Stopford when she was 18. After her first marriage of four years broke off, she met Corky Ballas in America – he would become her long-term husband.
Shirley and Corky got hitched in 1985 and divorced in 2007. “Then I’ve had a couple of boyfriends, and that all ended in disaster,” she shared on the podcast.
“Could I have made this marriage work? Should I have stayed here? Should I have done . . . shoulda, shoulda, shoulda, shoulda, shoulda?” she added.
Her previous two marriages didn’t work, but she’s still cordial with her former husbands. While Sammy remains to be the “first person” she would all if her life “fell apart tomorrow”, Nigel is her financial adviser.
Shirley revealed her dad walked out on the family when he was just two years old, leaving her mum to raise both kids. Having grown up without an example of a “family environment”, she feels she’s not the “most trusting person”, which comes from her “childhood and the ups, the downs.”
As far as her first marriage is concerned, the TV star thinks of it as the classic case of the “right person at the wrong time”. Four years older than Shirley, Nigel was “kind” and “caring.”
Danny Taylor breakup
Shirley and her ex-boyfriend Danny Taylor met in 2018 and split last month after being together for six years.
Sources previously claimed that distance was a factor in their relationship as they lived in different parts of the country. While she lives in London with her mum, Danny is based in Liverpool.
It’s said that Shirley “made a lot of effort” to see Danny and support his work in theatre and panto. When the commute became almost impossible, the couple decided to part ways.
Speaking on the podcast, the TV star revealed a non-negotiable in dating. “What turns me off is a liar, somebody who says they’ll be there and isn’t,” she said.
“And that could come from my past. If you say you’re going to be there at 12 o’clock, please be there, because it’s your time and mine.”
Despite the breakup, she’s navigating her personal gracefully. When people ask her if she’s happy, Shirley tells herself: “What I’ve learned, happy for me now, is I’ve got this little grandson, and I enjoy my FaceTime call every day with my son.”
“I’m blessed that my son calls me the majority of the time, every day, and I have that relationship with him, and I like being with my mother when she’s cooking in the evening,” she added.
Read more: Strictly judge Shirley Ballas on getting breast implants to ‘save’ her marriage
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