Strictly Come Dancing’s Shirley Ballas apologised after shocking audiences by kissing fellow judge Motsi Mabuse during the first live show on Saturday night.

The dancing expert, 64, was giving advice to Olympic swimmer Tom Dean and his dance partner Nadiya Bychkova about their tango performance when she gave an impromptu demonstration.

Shirley explained that the style was ‘all in the posture’ as she asked Motsi to help her illustrate the point.

Anton Du Beke encouraged them as she shouted ‘go on girls’ – just as Shirley moved her head a certain way and accidentally locked lips with Motsi.

Breaking her silence on the moment on Instagram on Sunday morning after the show Shirley joked: ‘Sorry @motsimabuse you moved your head too soon! @bbcstrictly what did you think of last night’s show?’

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Strictly Come Dancing’s Shirley Ballas apologised after shocking audiences by kissing fellow judge Motsi Mabuse during the first live show on Saturday night

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The dancing expert, 64, was giving advice to Olympic swimmer Tom Dean and his dance partner Nadiya Bychkova about their tango performance when she gave an impromptu demonstration

Strictly returned for its 20th series on Saturday as it shrugged off the bullying scandal with fan favourites Amy Dowden and Aljaz Škorjanec making their return.

The BBC dancing show has been through a tough year after numerous previous contestants alleged abuse by professional dancers.

Fans were delighted as Amy returned to the dancefloor for a stunning Waltz with her partner, JLS star JB.

Meanwhile Aljaz performed an equally incredible routine with his partner Tasha Ghouri, as they stunned the judges with an upbeat Cha Cha.

Surprisingly, one star spotted in the audience was Zara McDermott – who was at the heart of the scandal when footage emerged of Graziano Di Prima ‘kicking her’ in rehearsals – as she turned up for the show to support her pal Pete Wicks.

Amy, 34, made a glorious comeback and told host Claudia Winkleman ‘I’m so happy I could burst’ after scoring an impressive 31 points on the dancefloor.

The fan favourite performed a moving Waltz to When I Need You by Leo Sayer, leaving both judges and fans emotional.

It’s a big year for Strictly as it celebrates its 20th year, while Amy made her much-awaited return to the show following her heartbreaking cancer battle.

She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in May 2023 and in what became the toughest year of her life, Amy underwent a mastectomy, chemotherapy, fertility treatment and was hospitalised with sepsis.

Breaking her silence on the moment on Instagram on Sunday morning after the show Shirley joked: ‘Sorry @motsimabuse you moved your head too soon! @bbcstrictly what did you think of last night’s show?’

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Shirley explained that the style was ‘all in the posture’ as she asked Motsi to help her illustrate the point.

She looked stunning as the show returned for its live shows as she wore a sheer lace black dress

Anton Du Beke encouraged them as she shouted ‘go on girls’ – just as Shirley moved her head a certain way and accidentally locked lips with Motsi

However, she announced in February she would be returning to the show this year after a mastectomy and chemotherapy left her with ‘no evidence of disease’ following tests.

JLS star JB, 37, seemed over the moon after the dancing routine and while chatting to co-host Claudia, he said : ‘I just really enjoyed learning it.’

Fans couldn’t stop raving about the stunning performance, praising JB’s skills and cherishing the dancer’s return to the beloved show.

Taking to X – formerly Twitter – they wrote:

‘Amy Dowden is back and I could not be happier! #Strictly’;

‘I can’t tell you how much it fills my heart to see Amy Dowden back And I’m so glad she’s with JB #StrictlyComeDancing #Strictly’;

‘So my fave coupling on @bbcstrictly is @JBGill & @dowden_amy … both are GREAT DANCERS & the loveliest of people on & off screen … #JBgill #Strictly #BBCstrictly’;

‘How utterly lovely is it to have Amy and her beautiful smile back on our screens? #Strictly’;

Motsi looked shocked by the kiss too before laughing it off

The judges were back to give their advice on all the dances

‘What a beautiful first dance from jb and amy, and so excited to see amy back on the dancefloor with a partner. this partnership will be magical to watch and can’t wait #strictly’;

‘Nobody could have prepared me for Amy’s first dance being a waltz. That was stunning and I am a mess #Strictly’;

‘Big it up for back on the dance floor What a lovely first dance #Strictly #SCD.’

This weekend, all fifteen celebrities and their pro partners took to the dancefloor for the first live show following last weekend’s dazzling launch, where the pairings were first revealed.

Strictly Come Dancing 2024: Who are the couples?

Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell 

JB Gill and Amy Dowden MBE 

Nick Knowles and Luba Mushtuk

Paul Merson and Karen Hauer 

Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał

Sam Quek MBE and Nikita Kuzmin

Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola 

Toyah Willcox and Neil Jones

Punam Krishan and Gorka Márquez 

Wynne Evans and Katya Jones

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Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec 

Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas

Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe 

Tom Dean MBE and Nadiya Bychkova

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Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu

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