Archive June 7, 2025

Strictly Come Dancing star Shirley Ballas has taken part in a tattoo charity fundraiser to help raise money and awareness for the anti-suicide charity CALM

Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas has got a tattoo in honour of her late brother – and to raise funds for a mental health charity. The 64-year-old TV star was left devastated in 2003 when her brother, David, took his own life at the age of 44.

Shirley has discussed her love for her brother and her sadness over her loss in the past – as well as highlighting the fact that he struggled with depression in order to help others find the help they need. On Saturday, the dance expert got a tattoo of her late brother’s first and second initials as well as his last name, Rich.

Taking to Instagram, Shirley posed alongside tattooist Tal Booker, 31, the brother of Love Island star Eyal Booker, 29, and showed off her new inking. She wrote alongside the post: “A tattoo for my brother… thank you @talbooker honoured to be tattoo number 2 of 24 in your @calmzone #TattooAThon.”

Shirley previously discussed her loss on the Great Company podcast, revealing her family battled to have her brother get help before his tragic suicide. She said: “I was wrapped up in my life, because at that time, I had two other children I was taking care of, plus my own son, and they were all dancers, and I was just wrapped up in my world of ballroom dancing.

“I was in London. He was up north, and my mother went to stay with him for six weeks. But my mother’s old school, and they don’t share. So, what I should have done then, if I look back now, is gotten the car straight away and gone to see the situation for myself. He was just in a bad place.

“He explained it like being in a dark, black hole that he couldn’t climb out of. He’d lost a lot of weight, and the doctors couldn’t help him.

“We tried to get him sectioned, and when, apparently, I wasn’t there, but my mum was. When they took him in the car and they pulled up to the hospital, he recognized somebody that was stood on the steps, and he was too he was the macho man on the housing estate, and he was too embarrassed, he made them turn the car around.

“So had she not been there that day, then maybe things could have been different. And it just nobody talked about things like that. No one talked about things like that at all, and they just popped in with pills, you know, like these antidepressants.”

And expressing her sadness over David’s death, she said: “‘I still remember the morning it happened. I call my mum to say that Mark, my son, would be performing at St Paul’s church in London, and maybe they both like to come down for the day.

“And my brother said, no, no, no, no, I’m feeling much better now. But you go mum, and against her better judgment, she didn’t want to go. And I pushed her to go a little bit because she’d been there, you know, and was having this tough time. David didn’t want to go, and it was that they chose to do that.

“So, for that, I will live with for the rest of my life. She blames herself, but I blame myself because I was the one pushing her to go. She felt she shouldn’t have left.”

Meanwhile, Tal has set out to raise funds for the anti-suicide charity CALM where he has planned to tattoo 24 designs within 24 hours. He explained via Instagram previously: “The most likely thing to kill a young person is themselves, and around 18 people day in the UK die by suicide. One of the ways we can change that, is by talking about it.

“That’s why I’ve teamed up with @calmzone to do a 24 hour tattoo-a-thon on the 7th and 8th June. To raise vital funds and start important conversations.

“If you’d like to get involved or show your support, head over to thecalmzone.net to register your interest or donate at the link in my bio. Just £12.20 is enough to fund one potentially life saving call.”

As they visited Chris Hughes’ family in the Cotswolds, JoJo Siwa and fellow Celebrity Big Brother star Chris Hughes shared a sneak peek into their blossoming romance.

JoJo Siwa is clearly enjoying her budding romance with Celebrity Big Brother pal Chris Hughes and shared their sweet trip in the Cotswolds. The American reality TV star, 22, and former Love Island contestant, 32, have been growing closer after going public with their romance.

And now, the Dance Moms alum has taken to Instagram to showcase a batch of loved up snaps of the pair. She has been spending time with her new man and his family during a cosy weekend in the Cotswolds.

One shot showed Chris picking up his love and carrying her, with others showing them messing around when they were out with horses. In one hand gestured in a sweet manner. As their relationship continued to develop, the duo were also spotted sipping sweet treats and dinners.

JoJo explained that this was her first time touching a horse since being thrown off one eight years ago in a caption for each of her 11 Instagram photos.

JoJo had captured the couple clasping each other’s hands in JoJo’s final photo. She adorably adorned a white heart emoji with the phrase “the one thing that can make everything better.”

Ben, Chris’ brother, and others who responded to the photo dump in the comments section shared sweet responses. Can I accept credit for the entire English breakfast, he joked? You’ve already missed me! “!

Another fan described her relationship with Chris as a “rebirth” rather than a “rebrand” They boasted that JoJo Siwa’s UK appearance was “really beautiful,” adding that she finally feels free.

We’re now seeing her unfiltered, unapologetic, and real after years of being abused and overworked in the spotlight, from Dance Moms to every glitter-covered contract thrown her way. This is a rebirth rather than a rebranding. And honestly? She deserves every moment of tranquility and strangeness that she is finally permitted to enjoy.

JoJo added a Stories clip of her inside the Big Brother house after her image uploads. Take me back, she said in the video.

To celebrate their growing friendship, JoJo recently admitted to having a romantic tattoo in mind. She claimed that she wants their blossoming romance to “last forever” and that she is even considering starting a memorial project to honor their union.

JoJo gushed about what initially attracted her to Chris in the Big Brother house while discussing the Rosebud podcast with Gyles Brandreth. She stated, “I was the only person I knew before entering the show what they looked like when he first entered.”

“Oh, that’s the Chris guy,” I thought. I initially assumed he was a good hugger, but I soon learned that. His hug was nice to me. That resembled a warm embrace. And he smelled good.

She continued, “I promised in Big Brother that I would get this bamboo stick and that I wanted to get two more tattoos from the Big Brother house of memories that I have there.”

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

READ MORE: Butlin’s revamp major holiday park with ‘top quality’ attractions and prices at £69

Before she passed away in 2016, the legendary singer revealed to him what tragic advice she had given him. Prior to her death, Sir Tom Jones was married to his wife Melinda “Linda” Trenchard for 59 years.

Sir Tom Jones has opened up about his late wife’s final words before she passed away from cancer. The legendary singer was by Melinda “Linda” Trenchard’s side during her final days following a 59-year marriage that lasted until her passing in 2016.

Celebrating his 85th birthday, Sir Tom recounted the profound advice Linda gave him. Speaking on BBC’s Sounds of the 60s with Tony Blackburn, he shared: “When my wife knew that she had terminal cancer, I was with her for the last 10 days in hospital in the room with her.

She said, “Look, I gotta leave, but you don’t fall with me,” and she was right. I’m going down, but I’m aware that there is nothing I can do to stop it. ‘”.

He went on to explain how his dearly beloved Linda had urged him to persevere and how those words had aided him as he pondered his grief and served as guidance for young artists today.

She said, “Don’t fall for me; you have to keep going, you have to get on stage.” You still have songs to sing, and when you do, you still think of me.

Tom reflected on the levity Linda brought to his life, underlining the importance of laughter and remembrance. He went on to express how Linda’s memory gave him the fortitude to carry on with his career despite considering retirement in the wake of her passing, reports Wales Online.

She adored jokes, and I once did the same. She now gives me strength because I had feared that after she passed away, I would crumble.

Sir Tom acknowledged how close his singing career was to being overdone by overwhelming emotion and acknowledged the difficulty of managing emotions while performing. You can’t sing when you sing because your voice won’t come out, so I didn’t think I could sing anymore.

Sir Tom Jones has given some wise words of wisdom to aspiring singers, such as, “You take the emotion and then you work it into the song, get it through, but don’t get too involved with it because then you’ll cry and you won’t be able to sing.”

Celebrating a milestone, the legendary singer announced on his Instagram: “I’m celebrating my 85th birthday this Saturday! and am thrilled to be sharing a very special concert performance – ‘Live on Soundstage 2017’ for the first time on my YouTube channel.”

According to GB News, Sir Tom will also appear on a BBC Arts program called In My Own Words in addition to Tony Blackburn. The renowned Sex Bomb singer remarked, “Taking the time to reflect on some of the extraordinary things that have occurred in my life for In My Own Words has been really enjoyable and thought-provoking.

Watching snippets of those past, times, styles, and struggles made me realize how fortunate I am,” I said in a statement. “Some of the archive I’d never seen before.

“The first house I ever owned made me think back so many times that I was able to spend the day there. I hope everyone enjoys watching it as much as I did creating it! “.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

READ MORE: Butlin’s revamp major holiday park with ‘top quality’ attractions and prices at £69