Strictly Come Dancing viewers were left fuming after head judge Shirley Ballas gave Angela Rippon a low score on Saturday night (November 4).
Shirley, 63, was slammed by fans for her behaviour on the BBC show which they labelled as “rude.” She could be heard commenting as the other judges gave feedback.
Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin opened week 7 with their jive to ShyFX’s Shake Your Body. The duo were given a solid 10 for their performance by Shirley and Motsi Mabuse, but they received an 8 from Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke.
Shirley and Motsi called their dance “outstanding” while Craig and Anton found faults in their “loose” footwork.
Strictly stars Angela Rippon and Kai were advised by Shirley to “draw in” their feet
However, it was Shirley’s comments about Angela’s performance that got viewers talking.
After giving Angela and Kai Widdrington’s performance a 6, Shirley said the duo’s performance was okay however they needed to “draw in” their feet a little bit more.
However, viewers were not happy with Shirley’s comments when she spoke over the other judges’ comments after critiquing Angela and Kai Widdrington’s performance.
Fans react as Strictly star Angela Rippon criticised
“Shout out to the sound person who keeps forgetting to fully mute Shirley’s mic so you can hear her muttering through everyone else’s critiques,” wrote one fan.
Another agreed: “Shirley was really bloody rude commenting in the background when Anton and Craig were critiquing Layton. She can sure dish it out.”
“Shirley: [mouthing off in the back while Anton’s speaking] Man she is REALLY coming along in her villain arc,” another commented.
“Can someone tell Shirley not to speak over the judges whilst they give their views on the dance? Or someone turns down her microphone whilst the others are dancing. It’s bloody annoying and rude!” a fourth added.
Meanwhile, fans were convinced that Angela looked “fuming” with Shirley’s criticism.
“Watching Strictly a little bit behind. Angela is absolutely fuming and outraged at that feedback,” one fan tweeted. “Angela looks fuming,” another wrote.
“Wow Angela looks fuming,” a third said.
Shirley opens up on her son losing a baby
Meanwhile, Shirley recently spoke about her son’s heartbreaking song about losing his baby.
“Last year, whilst I was judging Strictly, @MarkBallas and his wife @BCJean lost their baby. What should have been a beautiful time for them both turned into sadness and heartbreak. I remember Mark ringing me and Nanny [Shirley’s mum] from the US. We cried all night,” she tweeted the other day.
“They have written about their experience in, what I believe, is the most beautifully heart-wrenching song I’ve ever heard. The song is for anyone who has suffered grief or loss in their life. Sending a big hug to anyone who needs it.”
Last year, Shirley told the Mirror about the rainbow baby the couple is now expecting. A rainbow baby is a term for a child born after a miscarriage or baby loss.
“We’re calling this baby Rainbow because my daughter-in-law lost a baby last year. I was on Strictly and couldn’t fly over to them, which was devastating. I found it difficult to get through the show. Mark was on Dancing with the Stars and had to turn up for work, crushed. I knew how crushed he was but I couldn’t tell anyone,” Shirley said at the time.
Read more: Shirley Ballas under fire for ‘behaviour’ towards Strictly 2023 contestant Angela Scanlon
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