Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas' exciting new career move "confirmed"

Strictly Come Dancing's Shirley Ballas is heading to Los Angeles to take part in Dancing With The Stars, it has been reported.

Despite being in the thick of this year's Strictly, the head judge will jet off to California to enjoy a stint as a guest judge on the US version of the competition.

It's sure to be a hectic few weeks for the brunette as an insider told The Sun: "Shirley will fly to the US later this month after the Strictly live show finishes.

"She will then film Dancing With The Stars on Tuesday night in Los Angeles, before flying back to the UK for Strictly the following day.

"It’s a whirlwind schedule but she jumped at the chance to take part," the TV insider continued.

It seems this could be Shirley's foray into a potential regular role on the other side of the pond.

"This is just a one-off for this run but if the US TV bosses think Shirley is a hit, they’re sure to see if she would come back," the source added.

Of course, Shirley's son Mark Ballas is a professional dancer on Dancing With The Stars and has been since 2007, winning the series three times.

He's currently competing in the 35th season of the show and is partnered with former Love Island contestant Maura Higgins.

The duo originally met one another when they appeared on season four of The Traitors US together.

Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy at the 2026 Pride of Britain Awards on 19 October, Shirley commented on her son's partnership with Maura, and said: "I think that boy spends 24 hours a day laughing. She is the cutest, kindest, funniest person.

"She's never danced before but she's giving it her all and I love someone who goes from scratch to giving it their all," Shirley added.

Strictly Come Dancing airs on BBC One and streams on BBC iPlayer.

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Kirsty is a freelance writer and editor specialising in all things entertainment. Over the past 16 years, she has worked on showbiz desks at various national newspaper websites in London, including Express.co.uk, The Sun, and MailOnline.

More recently, she spent three years living in New York City writing celebrity and lifestyle news for DailyMail.com, The Mirror US, and Daily Express US. Kirsty graduated from Southampton Solent with a BA in Magazine Journalism and Feature Writing. When she's not watching reruns of Sex and the City, you'll find her listening to David Bowie and daydreaming about an espresso martini.