BBC Strictly head judge Shirley Ballas, 64, is facing renewed claims of “favouritism” in her marking of celeb contestant Pete Wicks, 36.
The controversy arose during Strictly’s crucial semi-final this weekend which saw Chris McCausland, Sarah Hadland, Tasha Ghouri, JB Gill and Pete Wicks compete for a place in the final.
The celeb contestants danced two routines each with their pro partners.
Towie star Wicks and Jowita Przystal danced an Argentine Tango to Bittersweet by Symphony The Verve and Foxtrot to Beyond The Sea by Bobby Darin.
Their efforts saw them placed bottom of the semi-finals leaderboard, with a combined score of 65.
Head judge Shirley Ballas was the most generous to the pair, awarding them 18 points overall compared to a brutal 14 from Craig Revel Horwood.
Head judge Ballas faced claims of bias
BBC
The other judges did spot many positives in Wicks’ routines, with Motsi Mabuse branding his and Przystal’s Argentine Tango as: “Hot!”
Ballas, springing from her seat, joined her fellow judge in chanting “hot, hot, hot”.
When it came to her own remarks, the head judge was full of praise.
Thumping her fist on her desk, Ballas declared: “You went to town! Best. Dance. Yet.”
Ballas called Wicks’ Argentine Tango his “best dance yet”
BBC
Ballas went on to give both of the Towie’s stars routines a nine, at odds with the lower scores from her fellow judges.
Fans were quick to accuse the 64-year-old of “favouritism” towards Wicks and took to social media to vent their frustrations.
One fan fumed: “Shirley is obsessed with Pete, it drives me mad!!”
“9?!!!! not even hiding her favouritism anymore,” another raged.
A third lambasted: “Shirley never beating the ‘biased for her favourite boys’ allegations.”
However, some fans disagreed and believed Ballas was justified in her praise of the Towie star.
One said: “He so deserves a place in the final! Came in with zero dance experience and has grown so much!”
“Amazing… As Shirley said it’s all about the journey. No one can deny Pete has come a very long way since the first week,” another agreed.
This is not the first time Ballas has been accused of a bias towards Wicks. During Week Eight, the head judged awarded the 36-year-old with a 10.
The move outraged Strictly fans who branded the decision: “A f*****g joke!”A f*****g joke!”
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