Strictly's Shirley Ballas breaks her silence on 'tough day' after splitting from fiancé

Shirley Ballas, who reportedly split up from her boyfriend, took to social media to share a new post after having a 'tough day'

Shirley Ballas has broken her silence after splitting from her partner to reveal she's had a 'tough day'.

According to recent reports, the Strictly Come Dancing lead judge Shirley, 64, had split from her long-time partner Danny Taylor - just three years after announcing their engagement. According to claims, it was Shirley that made the decision to end her relationship, which she has been public about over recent years.

Following the news being revealed, she took to her Instagram Stories to share a screenshot of a FaceTime call with her friend Alan Grundy. She wrote: "When you have had a tough day and you see this smile @grundyalan you can hopefully sleep. My friend for many years."

In the screenshot, her friend was seen smiling at her from the car while Shirley was in the top left corner talking to him from her bed. The couple got engaged in 2021 and the shocking news of their split came to light six months after the BBC star revealed the pair had ended their engagement, - but were still in a relationship.

Shirley and Dan first met each other in 2018. At the time, the duo were starring in pantomime in Jack and the Beanstalk. The two hit it off quickly, with Shirley falling for him a lot faster than he did for her. Danny was also a trained ballroom dancer. He also appeared in soaps like Brookside and The Bill.

A source recently told The Sun about their split: "As with any break-up, it is, of course, a very sad situation. She gave her all to that relationship and in the end came to the realisation that it wasn't going anywhere. She made a lot of effort to see Danny and support his theatre and panto work, travelling up and down the country."

They added: "Distance also played its part - Shirley lives in London with her mother and Danny remains based in Liverpool; that commute is a killer. But Shirley is a strong, resilient character and is looking better than ever. She will 100% bounce back - 2025 promises to be an absolute corker for her."

Shirley previously opened up about her romance with Danny. She revealed they met on panto 'as friends' and said it 'didn't really take off until March...for him.' She said: "I think for me it was [at] first sight. He was going through a difficult time in his relationship. We did become friends and then probably in about February I said, 'I love you Danny' and he said, 'I know'. It took a while."

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