Strictly Come Dancing’s Shirley Ballas apologises after shocking audiences by KISSING fellow judge Motsi Mabuse during the first live show

Strictly Come Dancing’s Shirley Ballas has apologised after shocking the audience by kissing fellow judge Motsi Mabuse during the first live show on Saturday night.

The 64-year-old dance expert was advising Olympic swimmer Tom Dean and his dance partner Nadiya Bychkova on their tango performance when she gave an impromptu demonstration.

Shirley explained that the style was ‘all in the attitude’ and asked Motsi to help her illustrate this point.

Anton Du Beke encouraged them as she shouted ‘keep going girls’ – just as Shirley moved her head in a certain direction and accidentally touched her lips to Motsi’s.

Shirley broke her silence on Instagram on Sunday morning after the show, joking: ‘Sorry @motsimabuse you moved your head too fast! @bbcstrictly what did you think of last night’s show?’

Strictly returned for its 20th series on Saturday, leaving the bullying behind and welcoming back fan favourites Amy Dowden and Aljaz Škorjanec.

The BBC dance show has had a tough year after several previous contestants alleged abuse by professional dancers.

Fans were thrilled when Amy returned to the dance floor for a stunning waltz with her partner, JLS star JB.

Meanwhile, Aljaz teamed up with his partner Tasha Ghouri to perform an equally incredible routine, wowing the judges with a gleeful Cha Cha.

Surprisingly, in the audience was Zara McDermott. She was at the heart of the scandal when footage emerged of Graziano Di Prima ‘kicking’ her during rehearsals. She was at the show to support her boyfriend Pete Wicks.

Amy, 34, made a glorious comeback, telling presenter Claudia Winkleman: “I’m so happy I could burst” after scoring a whopping 31 points on the dance floor.

The crowd favourite sang a moving waltz to Leo Sayer’s When I Need You, leaving both the judges and fans emotional.

It’s a big year for Strictly as the show celebrates its 20th anniversary and Amy makes her long-awaited return to the series after her heartbreaking battle with cancer.

In May 2023, she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. In what became the toughest year of her life, Amy underwent a mastectomy, chemotherapy, fertility treatments, and was hospitalized with sepsis.

However, in February she announced she would return to the show this year after a mastectomy and chemotherapy showed there was “no evidence of the disease” in her, according to tests.

JLS star JB, 37, appeared to be over the moon after the dance routine and during a chat with co-host Claudia he said: ‘I just really enjoyed learning it.’

Fans raved about the stunning performance, praising JB’s skills and being happy to have the dancer back on the beloved show.

On X – formerly Twitter – they wrote:

‘Amy Dowden is back and I couldn’t be happier! #Strictly’;

‘I can’t tell you how happy I am that Amy Dowden is back. And I’m so glad she’s on JB #StrictlyComeDancing #Strictly’;

‘My favourite duo on @bbcstrictly are @JBGill and @dowden_amy … both are AMAZING DANCERS and the sweetest people on and off screen … #JBgill #Strictly #BBCstrictly’;

‘How wonderful is it to have Amy and her beautiful smile back on our screens? #Strictly’;

‘What a beautiful first dance from JB and Amy, and I can’t wait to see Amy back on the dance floor with a partner. This collaboration is going to be magical to watch and I can’t wait #strictly’;

‘No one could have prepared me for Amy’s first dance as a waltz. It was mind blowing and I’m a mess #Strictly’;

‘We congratulate you on your return to the dance floor. What a lovely first dance #Strictly #SCD.’

This weekend, all 15 celebrities and their professional partners took to the dance floor for the first live show following last week’s splashy launch, which saw the couples revealed for the first time.