Shirley Ballas said her TV role away from Strictly Come Dancing’s judging panel has been a “a dream come true”.

The 63-year-old former professional dancer has served as head judge on the long-running BBC show since 2017, when she took over from the late Len Goodman. Despite winning over fans, and having her own army of loyal supporters, Shirley decided to showcase her skills away from the dancefloor with a starring role in another iconic BBC show.

Shirley appeared on an episode of Doctor Who, alongside Strictly professional Johannes Radebe, and she confessed it was a “dream come true” to film the show. Sharing several scenes with the South African professional dancer was beyond her wildest dreams, and Shirley admitted she enjoyed every second of working with Johannes, who she sweetly nicknames Jojo.

Shirley loved filming with Johannes
Shirley loved filming with Johannes ( 
Image:
BBC)


“It was a dream come true. He is the most wonderful gentleman. He’s so kind and caring! We had a lot – we went back in time and we were inside that phone box. He was a darling and it was great,” she told Express.co.uk.

Shirley played herself in the episode of Doctor Who called The Devil’s Chord, as the time-traveller, played by Ncuti Gatwa, heads back to the 1960s. The head judge and Johannes meet the Doctor, and perform a dance for him and his companion Ruby Sunday (played by Millie Gibson ). Their cameo in the episode was announced in November last year, and fans were delighted when they beloved duo popped up in the iconic phone box.

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She and Johannes performed a dance routine with the Doctor
She and Johannes performed a dance routine with the Doctor ( 

Image:
BBC)

“it looked like you had so much fun shooting this,” one fan told her on Twitter /X. “I LOVED yours and Johannes’ cameos in that fun, swinging 60s music number!!” another added. “How wonderful to have a mix-up of two of my favourite shows,” a third commented.

Shirley previously opened up on filming the Doctor Who episode, and revealed she was excited to perform a dance with Johannes. “The filming was one of the best days of my life. We’re doing a guest appearance with Jojo where I actually get to perform with Jojo and so many other dancers on the show, so I’m very, very excited for people to watch,” she told The Sun.