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Shirley Ballas reveals she’s on the hunt for new boyfriend after split from ex Danny Taylor and reveals her requirements
SHIRLEY BALLAS has revealed she’s ready to find a new boyfriend after splitting up from her ex Danny Taylor but she’s got a list of requirements for her next suitor.
The Strictly Come Dancing judge, 65, announced her breakup from her ex back in November 2024 and has been single since and looking after her 88-year-old mother Audrey.
Speaking about her love life, she told Daily Mail: “I may have had a date or two.
“I know my truth. I know my authentic self, and if I want to go out on a date I will go. Nothing serious. No labels, no tags.
“I’ve met several nice people over the years. If somebody asks me out and I like them, I go. If I don’t, I don’t bother.
“I am very careful, though, when I do go out with someone. I will have known them for a while.”
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However, the BBC One star has a certain list of requirements for what she looks for in a partner.
“Humour. I like somebody with some intellect. Generosity, too,” she expressed.
“I’ve always been that person that pays for everybody, so it’s actually quite nice when they say, ‘No, I’ve got this’.
“I think, ‘Oh, this is nice’. Somebody who’s smart, well kept, takes care of themselves. I like that kind of guy.”
Shirley called time on her relationship with fiancé Danny in November 2024 after six years together.
The news of their split came six months after the pair revealed they had called off their engagement but were still an item.
The two met back in 2018, when they were both starring in a panto production of Jack and the Beanstalk.
Danny, a trained ballroom dancer, has also appeared in soaps including Brookside and The Bill.
Speaking about how their romance came about, she said: “We met on panto as friends. It didn’t really take off until March… for him.
“I fell in love way before… I think for me it was [at] first sight. He was going through a difficult time in his relationship.”
In August last year, she divulged the real reason why the pair decided to split and it was events on her 64th birthday that led her to cutting things off.
The dancer said it was on this day that she was contacted by a relative of Danny’s saying he had “vanished”.
The family member told the dancing champ that they couldn’t get hold of him, and that his phone was off at that they were “worried” about him.
Shirley said this panicked her, as her brother had taken his own life when he was just 44 in 2003.
The judge has also been married twice previously, with her getting a divorce from first husband Sammy Stopford in 1984 after four years together.
She went on to marry Corky Ballas in 1985 and was with the dancer until 2007.
They share son Mark Ballas, who is a professional dancer on Dancing With The Stars in America.
He made Shirley a first-time grandmother in November 2023 when he welcomed son Banksi with his wife and singer songwriter BC Jean.
