Strictly dance trainer's life 'destroyed' by stroke

A world-renowned ballroom dancer who trained professionals for the BBC hit show Strictly Come Dancing, has been left unable to walk and in need of 24/7 care after suffering a severe stroke.

Jane Bullock, 60, has run ZigZag Dance Factory with her husband, Warren, for more than 30 years, and starred alongside him in their Netflix reality series Baby Ballroom.

But on 10 August 2025, everything changed. After teaching a class, the once fit and healthy dancer collapsed while doing chores at her Wolverhampton home.

Within moments, her life was "destroyed", Warren said.

"Suddenly she just staggered across the room and fell on the floor," the 61-year-old recalled. "I tried to pick her up and realised she'd had a stroke. Her mouth was drooped - she could only use one arm and one leg."

Jane was rushed to New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton before being transferred to the specialist stroke unit at Royal Stoke University Hospital. Doctors discovered a large blood clot in her carotid artery - the vessel that supplies oxygenated blood to the brain, face and neck.

A brain scan revealed she had suffered a midline shift, a dangerous displacement of brain tissue across the centre line of the brain. To relieve swelling, surgeons removed part of her skull.

"I saw her the next day - she looked unrecognisable and swollen," Warren said. "She spent about a month on life support and a ventilator. She couldn't open her eyes or speak, but she could move her finger and began spelling words onto my hand."

The couple have dedicated their lives to dance, training professionals for Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing With the Stars in the US, as well as building a ballroom in their family home. Their Netflix series has been streamed in more than 40 countries.

"We have danced all our lives," Warren, who grew up in Stoke-on-Trent said. "We were British number one and travelled the world representing England."

They also share 26-year-old triplet daughters.

But now, their world has changed beyond recognition.

Jane has been in hospital for seven months and is currently receiving rehabilitation at West Park Hospital.

"She's still totally paralysed on her left side," Warren said. "There have been cognitive changes too - she can't tell the time or work the TV remote or her phone.

"She's become very depressed, she feels like she's lost everything."

A fundraiser to help adapt their home and support her long-term care has already raised more than £46,000 in less than two weeks.

Jane is due to be discharged soon, but Warren fears he will be left to cope alone. Their daughters live far away, and the cost of professional care is beyond reach.

"I have no support," he said. "They've suggested I might have to give up my job - but it's something I've done all my life. I've looked into 24-hour care and it's around £2,000 a week, there's no possible way I can afford that.

"It's destroyed her life, but it's impacted mine massively too. The only reason I keep going is because if she didn't have me, who would she have?

"I'm trying to do her job and mine. We've lost her income, so it's been a financial struggle as well as an emotional one.

"She's a good person who lived a healthy lifestyle. She didn't deserve this. My mission now is to give her purpose, and to make whatever time she has left as worthwhile and enjoyable as possible."

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