Shirley Ballas sparks fury with ‘attention-seeking’ move after ‘perfect’ Alex Kingston BBC Strictly routine: ‘Made it all about her!’

The so-called Queen of Rumba was full of praise for the actress’s rendition on Saturday night

Strictly Come Dancing fans have been left well and truly divided after Shirley Ballas went the extra mile to heap praise on Alex Kingston on Saturday evening.

The actress and her pro partner, Johannes Radebe, brought the house down with their Rumba to the sound of Tracy Chapman’s Fast Car.

Despite its notorious difficulty with novices, Ms Kingston and Mr Radebe received a standing ovation from the live audience for pulling off their routine without a hitch.

And when the cameras turned to the judging panel, Ms Ballas decided to join them and took to her feet to applaud the ER star.

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BBC Strictly: Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe performed a Rumba

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BBC

“Shirley is on her feet! Goodness me, you absolutely smashed it,” host Tess Daly told Ms Kingston as she began to leave the floor.

“You have Shirley, the Queen of Rumba, on her feet,” Ms Daly repeated, which prompted Ms Ballas to go one step further than just giving a standing ovation.

“I have to come down,” the Strictly judge said as she left the panel to make her way to Ms Kingston and Mr Radebe.

“I have to, I have to,” Ms Ballas said as the auditorium filled with another round of applause.

BBC Strictly: Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe received a standing ovation from Shirley Ballas

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Ms Ballas then held Ms Kingston’s hand and said: “I have to tell you, in all my time – I’m going to get emotional…

“In all my time on Strictly, I have never seen a pair of legs work like that.

“Every closing place, every forward walk turning – just an absolutely perfect routine for me.

“Your choreography was stunning,” she added as she gestured to Mr Radebe. “The way the temperature was between the two of you was portrayed beautifully.

“May I give the queen a kiss?” Ms Ballas asked, prompting an open-mouthed response from Ms Daly while the audience erupted into cheers.

Following their embrace, fellow judge Anton Du Beke decided to follow suit, leaving his seat to shake Ms Kingston’s hand and tell her: “Well done.”

Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood also delivered favourable feedback to Ms Kingston, but Ms Ballas’s hefty praise still wasn’t over there.

When it came to the scores, Mr Revel Horwood gave the pair an eight, Mr Du Beke and Ms Mabuse opted for nines, while Ms Ballas awarded her first 10 of the series.

BBC Strictly: Shirley Ballas praised Alex Kingston

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The score left Mr Radebe in tears, and Claudia Winkleman revealed it was the earliest point in Strictly history that a 10 had been given for a Rumba.

But the glowing reception given by Ms Ballas didn’t go down too well with all of the Strictly fandom.

Taking to X to express their dismay, complaints soon flooded in. “Why did Shirley do that with Alex?” one fan questioned. “It feels like she made that all about her by coming out from the desk? #StrictlyComeDancing #scd #Strictly.”

A second let loose: “EMBARRASSING! Shirley Ballas completely ruined that routine and stole Alex Kingston’s thunder. People will be talking about her, and not how brilliant Doctor Corday was. Oh, look, I’m doing exactly that so I guess Shirley’s plan worked. #SCD #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing.”

BBC Strictly: Shirley Ballas gave Alex Kingston a perfect score

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Meanwhile, a third urged: “@ShirleyBallas you need to stop making the show all about you Shirley #Strictly.”

“That was lovely from Alex, very elegant,” a fourth echoed. “Shirley was a bit over the top, loved Anton taking the mick out of her though. #Strictly.”

And a fifth weighed in: “Shirley making Alex’s moment about herself? #Strictly.”

However, the feedback to Ms Ballas’s behaviour wasn’t unanimously negative, with some defending the judge’s passion given her fondness for the Rumba.

BBC Strictly: Shirley Ballas’s gesture sparked uproar

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Hitting back at the criticism, one fan weighed in on the debate: “Alex’s dance was certainly wonderful.

“It’s my favourite dance of the night and it was incredible to have Shirley out of her seat, standing opposite her at the end! I knew she’d give her a 10 #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing.”

And another said of the judge: “Well done Alex #Strictly you’ve got to admire Shirley’s love and passion for the rumba.” (sic)

Ms Kingston’s score of 36 placed her at the top of the Week Four leaderboard.