Holly Willoughby, the presenter behind Phillip Schofield’s touching tribute to Dancing On Ice, has broken her silence about her last remaining ITV show being axed.
Holly Willoughby has spoken out on Dancing On Ice being axed after 19 years. The presenter has fronted the show for years, having first worked with Phillip Schofield and in later years with Stephen Mulhern.
It now means Holly no longer has any programmes with ITV, for the first time since 2004 when she started on CITV’s Ministry of Mayhem. ITV bosses confirmed the show, which first aired in 2006, is to end after viewing figures dwindled to below 3million for the last series.
Dancing On Ice will not return to celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, as exclusively revealed by the Mirror earlier this month. Following the blow, Holly issued an emotional statement on Instagram, but failed to mention her former co-host Phillip in the statement or feature him in photos.
She expressed a huge thank you to the talented team, the crew, the celebrities, and everyone who has been a part of our Dancing on Ice family over the past 19 years in a behind-the-scenes photo of the most recent series as well as throwback snaps.
Dancing on Ice is like a burst of glittering, dazzling light, warm, joyful, and full of heart, as it is said every year when January is at its worst. It has been a real honor to work alongside real national treasures Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, and to have a front-row seat to their breathtaking skating.
“Watching them glide across the ice was nothing less than pure magic,” according to Arnica, Deep Heat, Spanx, and fake tan, the unsung heroes of the rink!
“I will miss it a lot, but I consider myself to be very fortunate to have had it for as long as we did.” Thank you for watching, you are the BEST! ! … “
Judges Torvill and Dean already announced they are hanging up their skates after the final dates of their tour in May. The most recent final, won by Coronation Street star Sam Aston managed to pull in just 2.7 million viewers – a staggering decline from the viewing figures it once had with an estimated 12 million tuning in during previous years.
Christopher gave a significant hint that the show was about to end earlier this week. He stated that we would be hanging up the skates as Torvill and Dean after his and Jayne’s We Last Dance tour wrapped up in Nottingham. Will there be a sad moment? Of course !
We “climbed up the mountain, saw the beautiful views, won a few medals, and we can bow out on our terms,” the statement read. The journey seems complete.
The Sunday night series was set to be dropped after falling to its lowest ever ratings, which is a far cry from its high of 12 million when it was on its best days. According to bosses, attracting a star-studded audience is the only way to deny the enormous costs involved in producing Dancing on Ice.
Holly made her return to Dancing on Ice last year just months after taking a step away from the public eye. She had quit This Morning after 14 years on the show in October 2023.
The presenter returned alongside Stephen Mulhern, who replaced Phillip Schofield after he stepped down from ITV when he admitted to an ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a younger male colleague.
Since its launch in 2006, Holly and Phil have hosted the program. Holly and Phil took over from Holly for three years before Holly and Phil reconnected after a break in 2018.
The ratings have dropped to the point where it’s difficult to justify the cost, according to an insider who said: “It’s had a good run for nearly 20 years and has a very loyal set of viewers who really love it.”
The show had its smallest live audience ever in 2012, at 2.9 million, a decrease of 700,000 from the 3. 6 million who had watched the show’s opening few weeks prior. The show opened this year with $2.9 million before dropping to $2.4 million.
Many of the 12 famous contestants’ paychecks come from the months of rigorous training required to become proficient and competent on the ice. Television also pays high salaries to hosts Holly and Stephen, as well as to the 12 professional ice-skating judges Torvill and Dean, as well as former Strictly star Oti Mabuse and fellow dancer Ashley Banjo.
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Source: Mirror
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