Darcey Bussell’s Sudden Exit: More Than Meets the Eye
When Dame Darcey Bussell announced in 2019 that she was stepping down as a Strictly Come Dancing judge, fans didn’t see it coming. At the time, Bussell was all smiles, telling everyone that she was simply too busy and wanted her daughters to remember her for her ballet—not just for holding up the scoring paddles on primetime BBC TV. That sounded logical enough, but if you scratch beneath the surface, there’s a different story brewing.
Turns out, Darcey’s departure had much more to do with creative differences than packed schedules. In a 2022 sit-down with the Royal Academy of Dance podcast, she let her guard down and shared that there was a real struggle between who she was and what the show wanted her to be. Bussell, who’s spent her life as a top-tier ballet dancer, said she constantly felt pressure from producers to set aside her classical identity. “They didn’t want me to be the ballet dancer,” she said, sounding almost incredulous. “Well, sadly I am, and I think you chose me because I am the ballet dancer.”
The tension was about more than just image. Bussell was stuck between being true to herself and fitting the TV mold. She explained, “I was always going to play myself, however much I was convinced that to look like and be like the ballet dancer wasn’t the right thing.” That was a tricky ask for someone whose whole career is built on poise, discipline, and self-expression. She never wanted to fake it or mask who she truly is for the sake of television.
Behind the Glitter: The Realities of Judging Live TV
Life on a glitzy reality show panel seems glamorous, but for Darcey, it had its downsides. “Being a full-time judge was hard,” she confessed. Unlike performing, judging required her to react instantly, make quick, snappy remarks, and sometimes even play up emotions for the camera. That’s not really how she operates—in the ballet world, there’s room to reflect, to get the artistic choices just right. On Strictly, it’s all spotlights and split-second decisions. For someone used to moving gracefully with purpose, that’s a big shift.
Bussell’s journey with Strictly started off as a one-off gig; she first popped up in 2009 as a guest. By 2012, fans loved her so much that she became a mainstay on the panel, joining Craig Revel Horwood and later, Shirley Ballas, with Anton Du Beke eventually coming onboard. Her blend of technical know-how and relaxed charm made her a fan favorite. But week after week, feeling like she couldn’t show up as her truest self left her feeling out of place.
When Darcey announced she was leaving, her spot was quickly snapped up by Motsi Mabuse, who added a new flavor to the judges’ table. Meanwhile, BBC execs like Charlotte Moore rushed to thank Darcey, calling her a “national treasure” and promising she’d always be a part of the family. Even so, it’s clear that for Bussell, walking away was about much more than freeing up her schedule—it was about protecting the part of her that fans loved the most: the ballerina, not the reality TV personality.
