Strictly staff forced to perform the Heimlich manoeuvre on Shirley Ballas after she started choking moments before show begins

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She danced onto the floor in a shimmering, pale gold dress and high heels, smiling and waving at the camera as the band began to play.

Shirley Ballas walked to the judges’ table on Strictly Come Dancing, giving her skirt a playful flick as she went. She then settled into her seat and burst out laughing.

It was the series’ biggest night – the yearly Blackpool show – and the head judge on the BBC program knew millions of viewers across the country would be watching.

Known for her direct honesty, which sometimes draws criticism, the celebrated former Latin Queen took her place center stage Saturday night, prepared to give her honest opinions to the remaining contestants.

Just before Shirley excitedly came on stage, she had a frightening medical scare. She choked on a fishbone, and a member of her team had to perform the Heimlich maneuver to help her breathe again.

Honestly, after that happened – can you even imagine?! – most celebrities would have run screaming, demanded the show be stopped. But not Shirley! She just kept going, a perfect, unwavering smile fixed on her face. And the dress! That gorgeous £575 Georgia Hardinge dress didn’t even get a wrinkle! It was like nothing had happened, she’s just… incredible. I swear, she’s superhuman.

This recent hardship followed a difficult year for her, which included a painful breakup after six years with Danny Taylor and her mother’s declining health.

Despite facing constant bad luck and criticism from viewers, Shirley is determined to keep her job on the show and will do whatever it takes to maintain it, according to sources at the Daily Mail.

According to a TV source, Shirley is a huge fan of Strictly and rarely misses an episode – she truly embodies the show’s ‘keep dancing’ spirit.

She’s faced a difficult year, but it’s only strengthened her resolve to maintain her public image and keep things running smoothly on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.

Shirley appears utterly glamorous on screen, always dressed in stunning designer gowns, with beautifully styled hair and flawless makeup.

Honestly, I follow everything about her, and it’s so amazing to know that even with her busy life at the BBC, she makes time to be with her mom, Audrey. I read that Audrey’s been dealing with a lung condition – COPD, they said – since last year, and it just shows what a wonderful person she is to be there caring for her. It really warms my heart!

They live together in Shirley’s house in Dulwich, south London. Shirley recently shared her worries about leaving her mother alone when she goes to work.

She recently shared with BBC Radio Manchester that watching her mother struggle with shortness of breath over the past three years, due to smoking, has been difficult.

I had to watch her become very sick. I was there when she struggled to breathe and was choking because her airways closed up.

She explained that they now only go out once a week, usually for just a couple of hours. Her companion doesn’t enjoy leaving the house and prefers to stay home, which she finds a little upsetting.

When Shirley is working, she usually asks her assistant to care for Audrey and receive text updates about how she’s doing.

‘I worry about her all the time,’ she said.

When I’m at work, my assistant usually takes care of her. He often sends me updates, like the time she climbed onto a stool to dust the decorations.

‘She got so ill last winter that I could not go to work.’

Shirley, a judge on Strictly, has revealed she hasn’t been dating since her split from Danny last year, even though she often appears playful with the male contestants on the show.

Shirley had been married twice before – once to Sammy Stopford and again to Corky Ballas – and after those relationships didn’t work out, she believed she’d finally found the right person in the actor, even though he only had small roles.

The situation became critical when her partner, 13 years younger at 52, suddenly disappeared on her 64th birthday. This deeply upset her and brought back painful memories of her brother’s suicide years before.

When Danny returned the next day and pretended everything was normal, she realized the relationship was finished.

I’ll never forget that night. I looked over and saw my mother deeply distressed, clearly reliving past trauma,” she recalled.

‘I just thought “this can’t go on”. Not just for my sake, but my mum too.’

As expected, Danny has started dating someone new, but Shirley has chosen to stay single and isn’t looking for a new relationship.

‘I neither want nor need a partner,’ she told Best magazine earlier this month.

‘I’ve been divorced twice and been single since splitting from my last boyfriend – Danny Taylor.

I’ve realized that romantic love isn’t my main goal in life. I’m here to share my passion for dance, help others experience the joy of it, and empower them to become their best dancers.

She suggested she might be hesitant to form close relationships because of past hardships. She explained that her father left when she was very young, her brother tragically died by suicide, and she experienced two failed marriages.

Shirley regularly faces harsh online criticism, with people attacking her looks, personality, and skills as a dancer, especially during her time on Strictly Come Dancing.

She’s been consistently facing criticism from dedicated fans of the show, who accuse her of unfairly favoring male contestants in her scoring.

In 2023, the abuse went so far that she admitted she had become scared to leave the house.

She revealed to Olivia Attwood in an ITV documentary about online abuse that she’d received death threats, including drawings depicting her in a coffin with someone digging her grave and a hateful message directed at her.

‘I never relax. It has changed my life completely I would say.’

Shirley experienced a frightening ordeal when a fishbone lodged in her throat, leaving her unable to breathe for twenty minutes. This happened right before Saturday’s performance and marked a stressful end to an already difficult year.

She described being very frightened during the experience, and said it could have been much worse if her hair and makeup artist hadn’t known how to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

I was choking on a bone, and thankfully, my amazing wife Jane – we’ve been together for nine years – knew exactly what to do! She performed the Heimlich maneuver and managed to dislodge it. I’m so grateful for her quick thinking and how much she cares.

‘But for 20 minutes there, it was lodged and I couldn’t breathe, so it was terrifying.’

She added: ‘I really thought that was it.’

Despite a difficult year filled with personal struggles and health issues, Shirley Ballas is determined to continue on Strictly Come Dancing. A minor health problem and some harsh criticism won’t be enough to make her step down.

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2025-11-29 20:34