Motsi Mabuse has reportedly pulled out of a stage tour that clashed with Strictly Come Dancing to take part in the upcoming series.
The judge, 40, had signed up for Germany’s Let’s Dance tour but would have missed the first four weeks of Strictly had she honoured the commitment.
An inside source told The Sun on Sunday: ‘Her diary clash has been a real headache for everyone. There was no way she could have done both.’
Panic over: Motsi Mabuse has pulled out of a stage tour that clashed with Strictly Come Dancing to take part in the upcoming series
They continued: ‘When push came to shove she passed on the tour and signed a new contract. The Strictly bosses are thrilled to have her back on board.
‘Their main aim for this year was to get all four of the judges back on the panel, and Motsi has been the biggest question mark.’
Motsi will be joined on the panel by the show’s head judge Shirley Ballas, 60, Bruno Tonioli, 65, and Craig Revel-Horwood, 56.
To add to the confusion, the Let’s Dance tour in Germany are reportedly still selling tickets to the show with audience members expecting to see Motsi on stage.
‘When push came to shove she passed on the tour and signed a new contract. The Strictly bosses are thrilled to have her back on board,’ a source revealed on Sunday (pictured recently)
Ahead of Motsi’s decision to return to Strictly, there had been panic at the BBC at the prospect of her missing the series.
As well as sitting on the panel for Strictly in the UK, Motsi – who lives in Frankfurt – is also a judge on Let’s Dance, which is why she was involved in the theatre tour.
Additionally, The Sun reported that until recently Motsi didn’t know if Strictly would renew her contract for this year.
Clash? To add to the confusion, the Let’s Dance tour in Germany are reportedly still selling tickets to the show with audience members expecting to see Motsi on stage
A source told The Sun: ‘Producers have been pulling their hair out as they struggle to get all of their judges in the right place for the live shows.
‘Motsi’s fans in Germany are buying show tickets expecting to see her live.
‘Pre-Covid it was easy for talent to jet in and out of the UK for the night, but with travel restrictions it’s much harder.’
The source added that producers want to avoid relying too much on video links, especially as they’re paying big money for talent and that it’s a real ‘schedule clash’.
However, a BBC spokesperson said: ‘Motsi will be doing the next series, we will be working out the schedule as we have done in the past.’
Motsi missed two weeks of last year’s Strictly Come Dancing after she had to isolate due to an emergency trip to Germany – with Anton Du Beke stepping in to cover the role.
Busy: As well as sitting on the panel for Strictly in the UK (pictured), Motsi – who lives in Frankfurt – is also a judge on the Germany’s Let’s Dance
The dancer caught a flight after her dance school was ‘targeted’ and worked with police to ‘solve the crime’.
Bruno is reportedly set to miss the upcoming series after only appearing occasionally via video link last year.
A source told The Sun: ‘Bruno can’t commit to both shows right now and is staying put in LA — it’s a better lifestyle there, with great weather, which is good for his health.
‘He earns close to £1 million a series in America, so he has to prioritise that.
Sad: It comes after fellow Strictly judge Bruno Tonioli (left) is reportedly set to miss the upcoming series due to the Covid pandemic
‘Of course, he’s still very much part of the Strictly family and is keen to appear on a video link several times through the series.’
MailOnline contacted representatives for Bruno Tonioli and Strictly Come Dancing for comment at the time.
This will be the second series the judge has missed out on the dance competition.
Bruno was due to resume his panel duties on the semi-final last year but he and his bosses decided it would be safer for him to remain stateside and maintain his judging commitments on Dancing With The Stars.
The decision apparently meant facing a £125,000 pay cut from his reported £250,000 salary, and he instead appeared via satellite link.
Much-loved: This will be the second series the judge has missed out on the dance competition