Shirley Ballas is a busy woman. She’s about to return as head judge on BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing, she’s one of the world’s most sought-after Latin coaches and she’s also about to release her first novel, Murder On The Dance Floor, about a promising young dancer who dies in mysterious circumstances.

But there’s another role that Shirley is excited about at the moment, and it's much closer to home. In an exclusive interview in Good Housekeeping’s October issue, she revealed that her son, Mark, and his wife, who live in the US, are expecting their first baby in October - and she can't wait to become a grandmother.

'I can’t tell you how excited I am. Mark told us the news in such a thoughtful way,' she says.

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'I was in Las Vegas with his dad, Corky, because Mark was performing out there, and after the show his dog came in wearing a little bandana. It took us a while before we finally clocked that on the front of the bandana it said, "Baby on board"!'

Shirley, whose debut novel is out in October, also revealed what motivated her to write the book.

'When I was writing my autobiography, there were a lot of stories from my dance career that I couldn’t use – but when I shared them with people, their jaws hit the ground,' she says.

'So I asked the publishers if I could write a fiction book based on these experiences, and they loved the idea. I’ve worked with a brilliant writer called Sheila McClure and we’ve covered it all – bullying, backstabbing, dancers having sex in broom cupboards – all these things that I’ve seen, heard or witnessed. Don’t be fooled into thinking the dance industry is all baubles, bangles and beads!”

The Strictly judge, who lives in London and is in a relationship with actor Daniel Taylor, explained that in many ways, these are the happiest years of her life.

'It actually makes me quite emotional. I never imagined in a million years that, at 62, I’d be doing all these things,' she says.

'But what I’d say to anyone in their 50s, 60s and beyond is that we might not have the physique we once had – you might take your knickers off and your bum falls down to your heels, or your boobs fall down to your belly button – but that doesn’t mean we have to stop doing things, does it?'

Murder On The Dance Floor (HQ) by Shirley Ballas is out 12 October. Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One this September.

Read the full interview with Shirley Ballas in the October 2023 issue of Good Housekeeping, on sale 31st August. It is available in all supermarkets and online at MagsDirect.