Strictly judges ‘back down amid their pay row with BBC bosses’

Strictly Come Dancing judges have reportedly backed out amid their pay dispute with BBC bosses.

Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke were reportedly seeking an 11 per cent salary increase ahead of the new season of the BBC dance competition show.

But according to The sun they have now accepted an offer of between 3 and 5 percent.

Chief Judge Shirley is reportedly already earning £500,000, Motsi and Craig are raking in £200,000, while Anton is reportedly earning £180,000.

A source told the publication: “There was a real stalemate between the judges and the Beeb over this issue, with neither side willing to concede for weeks.

Huge: Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke were reportedly seeking an 11 percent salary increase

Fortunately, they have reached this resolution and can now breathe a sigh of relief and look forward to the new series.

“The show just felt that curing a cost-of-living crisis, and at a time when the license fee has been frozen, they couldn’t justify an 11 percent increase.”

The insider added that those involved with the show were beginning to feel that the pay line this fall was becoming a distraction from the upcoming 21st series.

The BBC has been approached by MailOnline for comment on the matter.

It comes after tThe show’s professional dancers reportedly berated the judges for demanding a massive pay raise.

Despite hours of training, the dancers – including Giovanni Pernice, Dianne Buswell and Johannes Radebe – are paid a lump sum of around £35,000 for their work on the programme.

The dancers apparently took to their group chat on WhatsApp in the wake of the news to beat the judges and are also considering asking for a raise.

BBC bosses were also ‘hot with anger’ after the demand for a salary increase.

Agreed: But according to The Sun, they have now accepted an offer of between 3 and 5 percent

Moneybags: The raise initially requested would have seen Chief Judge Ms Ballas, who currently earns £500,000 for her three-month stint, earn a staggering £15,960 an hour on the show

A BBC source told the Daily Mail: ‘While there is always negotiation when new contracts are signed every year, this is something different.

“Their jobs are some of the very best on television and they are already paid very well for their work, so when these negotiations started this time there was shock and anger.

‘It’s also not the case that they work behind the scenes like the professional dancers do. They show up, get their makeup done, and get in front of the camera.

“The professional dancers work tirelessly for weeks on end, working their ass off for smidging what the judges already earn, let alone what they want to earn.

“You would think they would know they work for the BBC and they are essentially paid by the British public through the license fee.”

At the time, MailOnline contacted representatives for Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Anton Du Beke and BBC spokespersons for further comment.

This came after Shirley reportedly got a ‘take it or leave it’ deal from strict bosses to stay on the show, after she revealed she would be quitting trolling online.

The chief judge and Latin expert faced a lot of criticism last year in which trolls criticized her decisions and accused her of ageism and sexism.

But despite previous threats to quit, Shirley has been in talks with bosses about a possible return to Strictly, revealing on Sunday’s Jonathan Ross show that “their people are talking to my people.”

Shirley joined the jury as chief judge in 2017, following the departure of Len Goodman.

Shirley recently hinted that she may not return to Strictly Come Dancing this year after the deluge of vicious online abuse she received during the last series.

Negotiations: This comes after Shirley reportedly got a ‘take it or leave it’ deal from strict bosses to stay on the show, after revealing she might quit due to online trolls

In a candid interview, she indicated that the previous series may have been her last, as she had hit an “all-time low” after the abuse “got out of hand.”

The ballroom dancer shared how she was constantly left in tears and struggled in silence after each show, telling that it was “the most negativity” she had ever experienced.

She told the Mirror: ‘Last year I had a hard time. It wasn’t a little bit, it was a lot – most of it was in silence. I felt the abuse spiraled out of control and affected me in such a negative way. I’m quite a stoic person and I tend to keep everything inside.’

She explained that when the abuse started, it seemed “bigger than anything else,” with the star talking about how it left her “crying and emotional,” as she was “embarrassed” by how she felt and didn’t confide in anyone.