Fleur East calls for Strictly's Shirley Ballas to be left alone after 'unfair' sexism claims
15.10.2022 - 21:39
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
Strictly Come Dancing star Fleur East has had a tough week after facing the dance-off in last weekends show.
The X Factor star has survived to dance away another week, but the drama from the elimination episode has carried on throughout the week. Head Judge Shirley Ballas has been facing a stream of online abuse after angry fans claimed she is "sexist" in her markings, and even calls for her to be sacked.
The vitriol started after Shirley, 64, admitted she would have saved Richie Anderson and Giovanni Pernice instead of Fleur and Vito Coppola but was out-numbered by the other judges. Shirley called the abuse “unfathomable”, but Fleur has spoken out in defence of Shirley and branded the criticism "unfair", reports the Mirror.
She says: “It was a rough Sunday night. It was horrible, it was bittersweet. The judges chose to save me but it was the worst feeling ever. Yet I’m alive, I’m still standing, I survived.”
Of the Twitter abuse she says: “Oh my goodness, I couldn’t believe it. There’s a lot of heat in the cha cha chat room. And I think it’s really unfair, actually. I have the utmost respect for all the judges. But Shirley...if you’ve not seen her dance, she’s incredible. So, any time I stand there I’m like ‘Just give me the notes, what do I have to do?’”
And while fans were quick to claim Shirley was harsher on Fleur than some of the lower-end-of-the-table men, The former X Factor star was quick to take on board the dance legend’s advice. She says: “I’m here to learn, so I’m going to take the criticism and do better next time.”
East London-born Fleur and pro partner Vito Coppola kicked off their Strictly experience in style, scoring 29 out of 40 for a sizzling cha cha before getting another 29 for Saturday’s American