‘The skating’s proving an issue for some!’
With the pandemic resulting in cancelled events and postponed TV shows,
Phillip Schofield says he feels incredibly grateful to be back rinkside as one half of TV’s strongest duo, despite this series being a little bit different than usual.
Speaking ahead of last Sunday’s show, he explains, “We’re so lucky that we’re working and we have the ability to be in a studio. I think this year will be an unusual show – there’s no audience as such, so that’ll be peculiar. Not so much for us, but I wonder how weird it’ll be for there not to be an audience for the skaters.”
Over the years, the show has seen the likes of Sinitta, Pamela Anderson and Kerry Katona take to the ice. And last year, TOWIE star Gemma Collins sparked a series of memes on social media for her diva-esque response to the judges and her spectacular face-plant moment during one routine.
But Phillip, 58, says he thinks this year’s contestants are better than ever – and that’s largely due to there being more celebrity availability than usual.
He adds, “We’re very lucky this year with the calibre that we’ve got – we have four very good skaters. I think a lot of people would have been off doing other things, but this is the only show around! Denise Van Outen thought she might be a better skater, but the skating has proved a bit of an issue. And Faye Brookes is great, but she’s terrified of falling over and becoming a ‘meme’, like Gemma Collins was. Lest we forget Gemma!”