Shirley Ballas has shared a deeply emotional update about her beloved mother Audrey, revealing that the 88-year-old’s COPD battle is worsening.
The Strictly Come Dancing head judge, 65, lives with Audrey and continues to balance her busy TV career with the daily reality of being a carer.
Speaking candidly, Shirley described the condition as “a slow death” and explained that her mother’s long history of smoking has played a major role in her declining health.
She said: “It’s a slow digression, it’s a slow death, my mum smoked the majority of her life. The only time she didn’t was when my brother died. Under those stressful conditions she stopped, but nobody will stop her smoking now.”
Shirley’s brother David died in 2003 after struggling with depression, and Audrey stopped smoking for 18 months after his death before eventually returning to the habit.
Now, Shirley says her mother is coughing, choking and wheezing more often, while her condition continues to deteriorate.
“She’s nearly 90, she’s going to have a whisky and a smoke and she knows what comes with it,” Shirley said. “I tell her this is what to expect, this is what’s coming if you carry on… but it’s so addictive.”
The dancer also opened up about the constant fear that comes with caring for someone with COPD, explaining that Audrey has to avoid infections and that everything around her must be kept carefully disinfected.
“If she gets a cold it can turn into pneumonia,” Shirley said. “It’s a 24/7 worry. People don’t have a clue what it takes even to care for someone with COPD.”
Her heartbreaking confession comes as Strictly prepares for its 24th series, with several professional dancers leaving the show and bosses still searching for new hosts after Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s departure.
Despite the chaos surrounding the BBC show, Shirley is set to return to the judging panel alongside Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke.
