Ice star Antony’s secret agony
DANCING ON ICE STAR ANTONY’S AGONY
Every time Antony Cotton takes to the ice, he knows one special person is watching over him. Close friend Gareth Donnelly was the first person he told about doing Dancing on Ice and he vowed to cheer the Corrie star on from the audience.
But shortly after Antony shared his secret, Met Police officer Gareth tragically passed away – aged only 37.
He had complained of feeling ill and had just returned from a hospital consultation last July when he collapsed from a lung haemorrhage. He left behind wife Amy, 33, and daughter Matilda – six months old at the time.
Viewers saw an emotional Antony dedicate his first performance to Gareth and now, as he prepares to dance again tomorrow, he is determined to do his friend proud.
Antony, 42, says: “I had a very, very special friendship with Gaz. We met through mutual friends 10 years ago. I adored him. He had a very different life to me, he was in the police, so as far removed from showbiz as you could get.
“Because of that, he was the first person I told about Dancing on Ice. He was beside himself with excitement and promised to be there on the first night – and then, of course, he wasn’t. Gaz had survived testicular cancer in 2009 and a heart op in 2016. In July, he wasn’t feeling well so went to the hospital and they said they would do tests. But as he walked through his front door he died.
“When his brother rang to tell me I just didn’t believe him. It was like it wasn’t real. I had texted Gaz that afternoon and he hadn’t replied. It was a real lesson in life, because it was so unexpected, you never know what is round the corner.” Antony is heartbroken that Gareth will not get to see his daughter grow up. Yet he is confident he is still watching over them.
He says: “Amy is incredible, so strong. They have got a one-yearold daughter and I am so mad for Gareth that there are things he won’t see. Before the first Dancing on Ice show I found a lighter in my jacket pocket that Gaz had bought me.
“I texted Amy to tell her and she said I should take it with me for luck. I said I didn’t want to lose it but asked Amy if she would come to the first show as my good luck charm. So she came with my partner Peter and my mum and dad.
“As frivolous as TV is, Gaz loved it. He loved showbiz, he loved gossip. He had
a tough job, so anything like that he loved because it took him out of that world. “After my first dance, I had this sense of relief it was over and then I thought of my friends and family, Amy in the audience, Gaz’s mum and dad watching at home. “So I just felt I needed to say his name out loud, because without a doubt he would have been there.” Antony is in constant touch with Amy and Gareth’s brother, Jimmy. He says: “Amy is amazing. She is doing everything in her power to keep Gareth’s memory alive with Matilda. She documents everything in her blog so Matilda will know everything about him.” Amy has now set up charity Guardian Angels UK to help other children who have lost a parent. But dealing with his own grief has made a tough experience even harder. Just 12 weeks ago, Antony could not skate and admits it is the most terrifying thing he has done – even harder than being in the jungle in I’m a Celeb in 2013. “It makes your knees knock, your legs wobble, it is unnerving,” he says. He is competing against Corrie pal Brooke Vincent and says: “There was one stage where Brooke said, ‘We may have underestimated this’.” Antony has faced a furore over his Club Tropicana routine, where he tried to pinch a dollar bill from down ice partner Brandee Malto’s top. The note vanished in the live show, so he looked down her top, outraging some fans. But he says: “It is live TV, I went to get the money out, the money wasn’t there, so I had t o stick my hand out and go ‘waaay’. “It is like anything else, if the prop ain’t there, it ain’t there, so you have to make something up. We had rehearsed 40 times and the money had never dropped out. The criticism doesn’t bother me, we live in that day and age where everyone has an opinion. If the audience pick up the phone and vote, those are the people who are judging me.” But he may have it tougher with the show panel than others. He has been pals with Jason Gardiner for 20 years – and he has vowed to be extra-hard on him to show there is no favouritism. “It wouldn’t be the same show without the judges, particularly Jason,” says Antony. “His job is to say what he thinks. But you can’t take it to heart. That said, it doesn’t mean I can’t say what I think, I am going to give Jason as good as I get.” His progress from rookie skater to ice dancer is even more remarkable given he is juggling training with his day job as Sean Tully on Coronation Street.
He arrived on the cobbles 15 years ago this July and admits he still has to pinch himself that he is in his dream job. “Never in a million years did I imagine I would still be on Corrie 15 years later.”
But Antony never forgets where he came from. He started acting as a child at Oldham Theatre Workshop, alongside the likes of Anna Friel, Lisa Riley and Suranne Jones. But while their careers took off, Antony struggled to find work.
It was not until he landed the part of Alexander in Queer as Folk that his life changed. But he says: “I never thought, ‘Why have they got that job when I haven’t?’ I was filled with pride for them.
“I still see all those friends now – Lisa Riley, Suranne Jones.”
And Antony’s performance on Sunday is inspired by another of his showbiz pals, Kylie Minogue. They have been friends for 20 years and met through her friend William Baker, who is from Manchester.
For disco week, he and Brandee are performing to Kylie’s Spinning Around.
He says: “I will text Kylie to tell her I am dancing to Spinning Around. It is disco week, Kylie is the princess of pop. I love that song and adore Kylie, so I’ll feel there is a little tiny Minogue hug around me.”
Dancing in Ice is on ITV1 tomorrow at 6pm. For information on Guardian Angels UK, visit gauk.org.uk.
It was a real lesson in life... you never know what is round the corner