Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas has defended her scoring after viewers accused her of being too harsh, insisting she judges each performance "without fear or favour."
The backlash followed the Halloween episode, which saw a historic three-way dance-off for the first time, leading to the elimination of actor Lawrence Robb. During the main show on Saturday, October 31, Ballas awarded Tabby Stoecker a score of five for her Quickstep, prompting boos from the studio audience and criticism online.
Ballas Responds to Viewer Criticism
Addressing Stoecker and her partner Mark Karmalita after their routine, Ballas said: "It wasn't your best for me, but I can see potential in this team." The crowd reacted with boos, and she added: "Listen to your auntie Shirley, because you've got a chance to go far."
Viewers at home were unimpressed, with one posting on social media: "Shirley being harsh on Delta and Tabby but giving John stupid amounts of praise?" Another wrote: "A FIVE?! Shirley, I am stealing that five panel from you. IT'S BEEN OUT TOO MUCH, AND IT'S UNFAIR EVERY TIME." Others called the scoring "truly ridiculous."
Judge Explains Her Standards
Ballas addressed the controversy during the online spin-off series Strictly: Lights Up. Host Abi Clarke said: "Spooky vibes on the ballroom. People at home are a chatter that possibly your scoring is harsher this week than usual. Did anybody else notice that? I heard you said we should be harsher and more technical. Why a couple who may have got a 7 last week, getting a 5 this week."
Ballas responded: "The performance wasn't as good as last week. Everything is according to what I see at that particular time without fear or favour. I don't do fluff. We're not halfway through the competition, we're almost there. I expect to see some of the standards we set at the beginning. If I don't see them and other people use them, that's what I do. I just judge on what I see."
She added: "5, 6, and 7 is a good score. 8 and 9, you're truly on your way. A 10 is perfect. For me a 5 is a good score, had it been a 2,3 or 4, we could have said it was a low score. 5 is not a low score in my book."
"The people are getting a 9 and you get a 5, do you want me to give you an 8 when you had a poor outline. You have to judge on what you see and be fair."
Strictly Come Dancing is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
