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Shirley Ballas can’t predict Strictly winner

Shirley Ballas thinks this year’s ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ winner will be a surprise.
The show’s head judge is usually "really good" at guessing who will take the glitterball trophy from the start of the contest but this year, she thinks the standout couple has changed every week and she has no idea which way the audience will vote.
She admitted: "Normally I am really good at picking the person from week one but this cast has been so diverse and each week it’s changing.
"I truly would not like to call it but I say to the viewers that they are responsible for the voting and they can make a difference – and I don’t think it will be the person people think it will be.
"Viewers like seeing dancers where they start off with no experience, although they also like people who can deliver great dances. It’s very hard to call."
Shirley is enjoying her role on ‘Strictly’ so much, she’s considering permanently relocating to the UK from America and is busy renovating her south London house so she has a comfortable base.
She told the new issue of HELLO! magazine: "I am in the middle of a seven-month renovation of my Dulwich house.
"I will have that as my base here now and am looking forward to that. I would love to settle over here; I think I will always keep my home in America as it’s close to my son, Mark Ballas."
Though there has been much of a talk about a ‘Strictly’ ‘curse’, Shirley doesn’t think the way relationships end and new ones start among the contestants should be viewed as a bad thing.
She said: "If they are single there is no problem, is there? And I don’t think it’s a curse because some people really do find love."