Shirley Ballas' doomed marriage to husband Corky - who waltzed off with Strictly star

The Strictly Come Dancing head judge was married to American ballroom dancer Corky Ballas from 1985 to 2007, and they shared one son, former Dancing With The Stars pro Mark Ballas

Shirley Ballas’ second marriage to husband Corky Ballas collapsed after he waltzed off with a former Strictly Come Dancing star.

The 64-year-old head judge wed American ballroom dancer Corky in 1985, just one year after her first marriage to Sammy Stopford ended in divorce. Shirley and Corky moved to Houston in the US, and welcomed their first child, former Dancing With the Stars professional Mark Ballas. However, in 2007 they divorced amid Corky’s relationship with his then-dance pupil, Kristina Rihanoff, who was almost 10 years younger than him.

The couple had a five-year affair, but Shirley insisted that the relationship began when she and Corky had separated, but not yet divorced. Shirley, who was hired as Strictly’s head judge in 2017, said she doesn’t hold a grudge against Kristina, who left the BBC show before Shirley took over from the late Len Goodman.

“I’ve had lunch with Kristina. I’m a people person. I love people,” she told The Daily Star in 2017. When asked if it would be an issue if Kristina returned to Strictly, she explained: “It would be absolutely fine. I have no issues with anybody being on the show at all.”

Kristina has had her fair share of controversies, as she has a history of romancing her celebrity dance partners. In 2009, she was partnered with former boxer Joe Calzaghe, and the couple were together until 2013. She then hit the headlines that same year when she was partnered with former England rugby star Ben Cohen, who left his wife for the Russian ballroom dancer.

Shirley is no stranger to being unlucky in love, and it was recently revealed she has called time on her six-year relationship with actor and dancer Danny Taylor, 51. The couple got engaged in 2021, and six months ago, Shirley admitted they had called off their engagement but were still together. According to The Sun, they parted ways due to their busy schedules, as Shirley lives in London and Danny is based in Liverpool.

They first met in 2018 when they appeared in Jack and the Beanstalk together, and Shirley confessed it was love at first sight, even though Danny was in a relationship at the time. “We met on panto as friends. It didn’t really take off until March… for him. I fell in love way before... I think for me it was [at] first sight. He was going through a difficult time in his relationship,” she explained.

“We did become friends and then probably in about February I said, 'I love you Danny' and he said, 'I know'. It took a while,” Shirley quipped. The Strictly head judge furiously denied she and Danny had split in June after they called off their engagement, insisting that she had simply “changed her mind” about walking down the aisle after being married twice before.

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