Shirley Ballas' son pleads 'don't be offended' as he praises Strictly Come Dancing co-star
Strictly Come Dancing icon, Shirley Ballas has shared that her son begged her not to 'be offended', as he revealed who his favourite star from the BBC show is.
Speaking to Heat magazine in a recent interview, Shirley claimed that her son, Mark Ballas, prefers watching Claudia Winkleman on the series, despite his mum having appeared on the show since 2017.
Chatting to the magazine about all things Strictly, she shared her thoughts on having so many women on the show: "We’ve got women supporting women on Strictly Come Dancing, for sure."
However, her son told her not to be offended as he revealed his admiration for one Strictly icon: "But I have to say, I said to my son Mark, who lives in LA, 'There are lots of ladies to choose from', and he goes, 'Mum, don't be offended, but it's Claudia Winkleman!' Our Claude is a huge success on the other side of the Atlantic."
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But, while her son claims to favour one of her colleagues, Shirley shared her one-year-old grandson feels a different way to his father, as he shows his love for his grandmother: "My grandson turned one last week, and I've got photographs of him watching the show from six months old. He doesn't understand why he can't jump in the telly to get to his grandmother!"
While his main line of work is choreography, the 38-year-old recently joined the panel of the US' version of Strictly, Dancing With The Stars, where he lined up next to Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough on the judges panel.
With Mark making a move into her world as he debuted on the panel of the dancing show, Shirley shared her delight on Instagram: “Huge congratulations to my son @markballas for being a guest judge last night on @dancingwiththestars."
Shirley could hardly contain her excitement, admitting she could 'hardly sleep': "I stayed up all night to follow along. I’ve hardly had any sleep as I was just too excited so I’m now exhausted but it was totally worth it.
"Watching him with his best friend @derekhough, @brunotonioliofficial and @carrieanninaba on the other side of the desk (in the same seat his little old mom sits in on @bbcstrictly may I add lol) was a very proud moment. Your English mom across the pond is very very proud.”
