Strictly Come Dancing has been embroiled in a string of scandals.

Shirley Ballas has been the head judge for several years (Image: ITV)

Strictly Come Dancing’s head judge has opened up about the future of the BBC show, which has been hit with scandals in recent years. It was reported on Sunday that BBC bosses have been left in a “panic” following the news that a former star was arrested on suspicion of rape following a BBC event.

The news comes three months after another unnamed male star was also arrested on suspicion of rape. A BBC spokesperson told Express.co.uk: “It would not be appropriate to comment on an ongoing police investigation.”

And now Shirley has stated that she believes the show will continue long after she passes. The 65-year-old told The Sun on Sunday: “Nobody is bigger than Strictly Come Dancing. Not me, not any presenters, not any dancers — that show belongs to the people.

The Strictly Come Dancing judging panel (Image: PA)

“When I came on the show in 2017, nobody knew me, and it was, ‘Oh, will it fail? Will it be this? Will it be that?”

She added: “It carried on ticking and it’ll carry on ticking long after I’m gone and kicked my clogs.”

On Thursday, it was revealed that a Strictly star had been arrested last month on suspicion of raping a woman.

Hertfordshire Police confirmed a man had been arrested, and said inquiries were ongoing.

Other scandals have rocked Strictly in recent years, as during the last series, contestant Wynne Evans was accused of inappropriate behaviour. He denied making a sexual remark, but was later axed by the BBC and forced to issue an apology.

In 2023, professional dancer Giovanni Pernice was accused of being “abusive, cruel and mean” by his celebrity dance partner, Amanda Abbington.

He was cleared of the “overwhelming majority” of allegations, but an investigation did uphold some of her complaints of harassment.

During the same series, contestant Zara McDermott was left “distressed” following her time with professional dancer Graziano Di Prima, who admitted to kicking her before he was fired from the show.