The Chief Justice of Strictly Come Dancing has previously said she fears trolling will be even worse this year due to the lockdown
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Strictly Chief Justice Shirley Ballas pleaded for viewers not to drag her into tonight’s first live broadcast
Her comments come after previously revealing that she fears trolling will be even worse this year due to the lockdown
Tonight, the BBC show goes live for the first time with its coronavirus prevention measures in place
Complete with new couples tables, podiums for each judge and no Bruno Tonioli, the show will be very different this year
Despite this, last week’s launch drew viewers with the show having achieved its highest ratings in three years
9 million people watched celebrities and professionals team up last week, surpassing Britain’s Got Talent numbers
She tweeted: « Are we all ready for tonight @bbcstrictly it’s gonna be full of crunches and pop Everyone’s doing their best #strictlykindness let’s be good to each other Enjoy Tell me what you think Hugs to all «
Judge Motsi Mabuse echoed her sentiments, which were retweeted by her sister and professional dancer Oti, writing: “Hello just a little reminder #strictlykindness Red Heart Red Heart !!!! Let’s have fun tonight! !! Love to feel those nerves !!!! Live excitement! @Bbcstrictly !!! «
Chief Justice Shirley, 60, has faced such nasty comments in the past that even ex-pro James Jordan stepped in to respond to the vile tweets
And Shirley fears she will be even more mistreated because people are stuck at home with little to do
She told PA: « Going into this next phase of Strictly, I wouldn’t be surprised if the trolling was 10 times worse because people are locked out, because we might get into a second lockdown and heaven help us if we do it and people are sitting at home with nothing more to do «
Shirley explained that she was first trolled when she joined the show in 2017 and said the first year was incredibly difficult
She said: « The first year was very hard, when people tell you, ‘You got a chest like a Seville orange that’s been eaten by a thousand slugs Ugly bitch, die, and people go coffins with their heads on it
« We (she and her mother) discussed whether I should continue, given the privacy breach, but my mother decided we had to take it all with humor. So when they got together laugh at me or call me stupid or thick, I just have to let go «
In her memoir, Behind The Sequins, Shirley revealed that a death threat was handed to her in her hand as she appeared in a pantomime
The post included a picture of her digging a grave, which read: « Do you realize how much you hate you? The country hates you How did they ever give someone a job like you, old witch «
Earlier this year, she also received a nasty message calling her a « gob ***** » and « a ****** e » which she described at the time as upsetting
After sharing the posts on Instagram, she urged her own fans to be strong if they received such abuse
She wrote at the time: « As we know I got a lot of bullying on Strictly this time around and my inbox on insta was full of horrible and horrible messages But it’s gone further now , so I had a hand-delivered message that I’ll share with you
« Hand delivered to the racetrack, addressed to me with comments or not-so-nice words or whatever and my post is for young people, anyone out there who gets horrible messages or hate mail or things from people who don’t know them
« The problem is with the other person, it’s not so much ours Even though I still find it quite upsetting to have to go play and then read something like that from someone who doesn’t even know me
« So today’s message is strong for 2020, do you really really love yourself and don’t get carried away by the bullies »
Shirley Ballas, Strictly Come Dancing
World News – UK – Strictly’s Shirley pleads for no trolling before first live broadcast tonight
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
