When I first went on Strictly' I had a little phase at the beginning, you know, when I was sat next to this really beautiful lady, Darcey Bussell - this ballerina, this Snow White beauty - that I stopped eating until I looked at myself and realized I looked so gaunt.

Shirley Ballas

I'm not a judgmental person because I have been judged all my life.

I've had a lot of trolling on Instagram, things I can't even repeat on air. The biggest shock was when it was hand-delivered to the Hippodrome theatre before I went on air. Hand-written.

Shirley Ballas

Written Things Thing

How many years did I waste worrying about the way I look? I'm almost 60 and it has taken me all these years. Don't wait until you get to my age to realize that you are beautiful.

Shirley Ballas

Age You Yin

When you get to my age, 59, the thought of getting the Latin dress and the Latin shoes on is a bit worrying. Your heart and your mind is always willing, but sometimes your body just says What are you doing?!'

Shirley Ballas

Time Art Age

The first thing I do in the morning is pick up my cell phone and call my mother to check that she's ok, and the first thing I do in the evening is call my mother to see how she's doing, and my son to see how his day went.

Shirley Ballas

Morning Up Thing

I always felt in my life I had something to prove. To myself, and to anyone who ever said I wouldn't amount to anything.

Shirley Ballas

Life Would Who

You know when you go into a room there's always somebody that thinks they're better than somebody else.

Shirley Ballas

You Ways Way

When I was with my second husband, I'd always paint my nails and go to bed with my make-up on; he loved all that.

Shirley Ballas

Love Wit Ways

Ever since I was a little girl I always wanted to be so perfect.

Shirley Ballas

Ways Way Wanted

My hairdresser Alan, who I've known since I began competing, lives with us, along with his husband Nathan, so I have my own gay gaggle.

Shirley Ballas

Pet Wit Who

My favorite room in my house is my bedroom; my private space where I can go to do my reading or listen to music.

Shirley Ballas

Space Music Where

I'm such a perfectionist that I see every mistake that I make.

Shirley Ballas

Very Take T

On Twitter one lady said, I've seen corpses that look better than Shirley.' I saw the picture she was talking about that Comic Relief had posted and I thought, Well yeah, she's got a point.'

Shirley Ballas

Yeah Wit Well

I'm the happiest at home when I get a visit from my daughter-in-law, BC Jean, and Mark Ballas, my son. They'll pop round for breakfast or I'll attempt to cook them a meal. That's the most special time for me.

Shirley Ballas

Time Home Visit

When I moved to L.A. I was single and didn't want to be on my own.

Shirley Ballas

Want T Single

I don't dwell, I'm not a dweller. I just like to keep moving forward, because life is short.

Shirley Ballas

War Life Well

Don't do what I did and think you need to have these procedures to make you look more attractive. Don't look at the implant and think it will make you beautiful and everyone will really love you.

Shirley Ballas

Love You Will

My whole life I've never felt, as a female, I was up to scratch.

Shirley Ballas

Life Whole Who

When I met Corky, he was a cook, a chef. He never started dancing seriously until he was 21, which shows you can make it from any age.

Shirley Ballas

Art Age You

If I could go back to my younger self, I would never have had the implants done. I feel relieved and I feel proud for removing them now.

Shirley Ballas

Younger Young You

I've been in an industry of glitz since I was a little girl. I'm always going to love to wear eveningwear and eyelashes.

Shirley Ballas

Riches and fame don't come close to having family members and close friends who really care for you.

Shirley Ballas

When I first went on Strictly' I had a little phase at the beginning, you know, when I was sat next to this really beautiful lady, Darcey Bussell - this ballerina, this Snow White beauty - that I stopped eating until I looked at myself and realized I looked so gaunt.

Shirley Ballas

You can't make somebody love you, no matter what you do to yourself. You can get implants, you can get all these procedures, thinking you will be more of a woman for that person. But it does not make a difference. If they don't love you, they won't no matter what you do to your appearance.

Shirley Ballas

I'm proud of winning the British Open in 1983 when I was very young.

Shirley Ballas

There was some bullying going on in my industry, which I felt particularly when I was growing up and as I got older.

Shirley Ballas

If you use your time well and you have your health you are already a millionaire and everything else is secondary.

Shirley Ballas

Aside from dancing, the biggest and proudest moment of my whole entire life was when my son Mark was born.

Shirley Ballas

I was engaged at 16 to Nigel Tiffany and he's now my financial adviser, so we've been friends all these years.

Shirley Ballas

It's not about what somebody else thinks about you, it's about what I feel like in my own clothes in my own skin.

Shirley Ballas

People seem to think that, by the time you hit 45 or 50, you might as well just pack it in and call it a day.

Shirley Ballas

My mother collects engagement rings.

Shirley Ballas

I think dancing was a way of showing your femininity and, through the years, your strength, because it's a male-dominated industry.

Shirley Ballas

I haven't got a green bone in my body. I have not got a jealous streak of any type at all.

Shirley Ballas

I don't like the darkness and sleep with the light on.

Shirley Ballas

I am an absolute clean freak and scrub things constantly; I am an over-perfectionist.

Shirley Ballas

I am terrible at remembering names.

Shirley Ballas

I have a little piece of extra skin - a good inch - on the end of my chin that I play with like Silly Putty.

Shirley Ballas

When I got the Strictly' job it made sense to come back to England.

Shirley Ballas

I didn't overly have friends in L.A. I would work and come home and watch television.

Shirley Ballas

I like the table to be beautiful with flowers and a nice tablecloth. I'm the hostess with the mostess.

Shirley Ballas

When you are part of a massive TV show like Strictly,' it's not just about the professional dancers and celebrities taking part, there could be young or old people out there who are watching and they might also be inspired to take up dancing, and I find that so special.

Shirley Ballas

I love ballroom dance, my favorite style being the Argentine Tango.

Shirley Ballas

It doesn't seem very long ago I was a girl from a council estate with nothing but dreams.

Shirley Ballas

As a child I was always busy, always throwing myself into something, whether it was the Brownies or a play at school.

Shirley Ballas

I think I was always driven because I came from absolutely nothing. I was that piece of rubbish from a block of flats on a council estate.

Shirley Ballas

Ballroom is a man's world. It's tough for women, particularly single women. But I've never expected life to be anything but tough.

Shirley Ballas

One of the things people learn with me is I don't need to pull someone else down to build myself up, and I will live and die by that rule.

Shirley Ballas

I was a fan of Meghan's before she met our gorgeous Prince Harry. I loved her in Suits,' I admired her work ethic and her charity work, and I think she is such a breath of fresh air.

Shirley Ballas

'Strictly' was my first job in TV ever.

Shirley Ballas