Holly Willoughby’s comeback to TV on Dancing on Ice following her shocking leave from This Morning failed to draw in viewers.
The 42-year-old broadcaster hasn’t been on television since leaving the ITV programme after 14 years, after the resignation of former co-host Phillip Schofield.
However, Holly’s huge homecoming, with fellow host Stephen Mulhern, does not appear to have saved the ice dance competition from an unexpected ratings fall.
On Sunday evening, just 3.6 million viewers turned in to see how retired boxer Ricky Hatton, former S Club singer Hannah Spearitt, and Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas would do on skates.
This represents a 500,000-viewer reduction from last year’s opening night, which drew 4.1 million viewers – a considerable drop from prior years’ opening evenings.
There was grounds for optimism after watching statistics in 2021 increased to 5.4 million from 5.1 million the previous year, but it appears it was merely a brief boost.
However, some fans of the show having referred to the ratings as ‘suspect’, with one X (formerly Twitter) user, @WhoPotterVian, saying: ‘I would have been expected a higher rating out of curiosity because it’s Holly Willoughby’s grand return.’
‘[This is] the first series without Philip Schofield presenting. It’s the kind of rating that makes me wonder whether it will turn out there’s an error [in the data],’ they further theorised.
Since the epidemic, TV companies have been known to provide distinct live viewership statistics, streaming viewer stats, and the total number of overnight viewers (those who watch an episode during its first 24 hours of availability).
On the night, Holly chose not to address her time away from the cameras
Despite dropping ratings, Holly got love and support from previous co-hosts Dermot O’Leary and Josie Gibson on Monday’s This Morning, with the former stating that Holly is ‘back where she belongs’.
‘Our wonderful Holly, back on television where she belongs, it was just wonderful to see her,’ he beamed.
Meanwhile Josie, who did make an appearance of her own during Dancing On Ice, said: ‘She looked amazing! I gave her the biggest hug,’ she added. ‘No one does it like the Willoughby!’
Only half of the couples competed in week one, with the remaining half of the competition, which includes Radio 1 presenter Adele Roberts, EastEnders star Ricky Norwood, and former Olympian Eddie the Eagle, beginning in week two.
Dancing On Ice is available to stream on ITV.