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Strictly Come Dancing head judge Shirley Ballas faces allegations of diva-like conduct and violating BBC editorial rules after a cruise trip where she demanded control over journalists' coverage and bullied attendees, contradicting her public advocacy for kindness.
Dressed in a glittering diamante suit, which had been bought for Strictly Come Dancing, and with the show's iconic theme tune blaring out, there was no mistaking that it was head judge Shirley Ballas on the cruise ship's auditorium stage earlier this month.
Ms Ballas has risked the wrath of bosses by pocketing 'between five and six figures' to 'bring Strictly glamour' to the ship on a seven-day Norwegian voyage - presiding over a dance competition and scoring contestants with replica paddles - despite strict editorial guidelines that prohibit the Corporation's talent from replicating or even referencing the BBC's content for profit. But that, I can reveal, is barely the half of it.
If the BBC takes a dim view of imitation, quite what it will make of Ms Ballas's diva-like behaviour on board is anyone's guess. I was unfortunate enough to witness it first-hand. Along with a group of other journalists, I had been invited on to the ship by a cruise company to promote its line and, ironically, Ms Ballas herself.
And over those several days, the star - dubbed the 'Queen of Latin' for her decades as a professional dance champion - appeared to make a point of snubbing us. She demanded complete control over what we planned to write, and approval of any photographs. Worst of all, when we refused, we were humiliated and ridiculed in front of the other passengers. It was shocking and, I'm sad to say, I felt bullied by her.
It's all the more extraordinary given that, just last week, she was sharing inspirational quotes about kindness on social media, having been open about the years of bullying she endured in the dance industry. But I saw no evidence of that kindness during our encounters on that ship.
Shirley Ballas, who was on a cruise with our journalist Alex Doyle, has been accused of 'diva-like behaviour' (Pictured walking out on stage to the Strictly theme song) Ms Ballas presided over a dance competition on the cruise ship and scored contestants with replica paddles, despite the BBC's strict rules on referencing its content for profit Her hostility towards us was overt from the start, which was surprising given that she had been allowed to approve which journalists and publications were permitted on the voyage. A source close to Ms Ballas tells me she even recommended a senior journalist from a red-top newspaper be invited.
That same paper later 'revealed' the new Strictly hosts while we were sailing. But on the first night of the voyage, at a welcome dinner where we thought we might see the star for an informal drink, she did not make an appearance - even for a brief hello. That was when the problems started. We were told by her team that, bizarrely, she wanted to approve each word that would be written about her, and the headline.
Most shocking of all? She wanted access to each of our camera rolls, so she could 'approve' the pictures we may have taken of her on board. Our response was a firm, but polite, no - as it would be for any celebrity seeking that sort of control. But that was not the last we heard about it.
The following day, we encountered Ms Ballas for the first time during a 30-minute dance class alongside other passengers. We had not yet been introduced as the journalists on board. At one point, when I was clearly struggling to master the jive, she warmly asked me my name and brought me alongside her at the front to teach me the steps. But it went downhill from there.
I was taken aback when she ordered one man - the husband of a woman in the class, who clearly wanted to capture a treasured moment - to put his camera phone away. She snapped that we were here to dance and asked him to stop filming her. I'd been told, Ms Ballas, who was raised by a single mother on a council estate, could be touchy when it came to photographs of her.
Afterwards, she demanded to know who the journalists were in the group - but not so we could have any real time with her, just so she could continue the stand-off about how much of our coverage she could control. There was a moment later when we thought there might be a good opportunity to break the ice. We'd all been watching an evening acrobatics show, and we ended up leaving directly behind Ms Ballas.
When cruise staff started talking to her, we lingered, thinking we could have a chat. But she ignored us. Standing inches away, she refused even to acknowledge our existence. We felt so welcomed by the cruise line and the staff on board; it was Ms Ballas and her team who made the experience sour.
It was not just a difficult position for us to be in. Throughout the cruise, we sympathised with the staff who were having to experience her unreasonable demands. Our time with the Strictly judge - or, rather, the lack of it - was to culminate in a photo opportunity at a wider Q&A with fans and passengers the following day. Leading up to it, the demands to control our words and pictures continued. We remained clear - we would not back dow
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Shirley Ballas Strictly Come Dancing BBC Cruise Ship Diva Behaviour Journalist Bullying Editorial Guidelines Dance Competition
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