Dancing On Ice 2023 has yet to begin, but there has been plenty of controversy behind the scenes.
The ITV juggernaut series, hosted by Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield, features a slew of celebrities doing dizzying routines in an ice skating rink in the hopes of being proclaimed champion.
The performances are judged by Christopher Dean, Oti Mabuse, Ashley Banjo, and Jayne Torvill, with the audience eventually voting for the winner in the finale.
Love Island winner Ekin-Su Cülcülolu, TOWIE star Joey Essex, former Liberty X singer Michelle Heaton, and comedian Darren Harriott are among the names appearing this year.
The celebrities have been hard practising with their professional ice skating dancers in the run-up to the premiere of Dancing On Ice, but there have been a few mishaps and accidents along the road.
Let’s go over all of the Dancing On Ice drama that has occurred thus far.
Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu struck down by fever
Ekin-Su, 28, aroused concern when she notified her followers on Thursday that she was’very unwell,’ just three days before the premiere of Dancing On Ice.
‘Very Ill.’ she wrote. Doctors have advised me to relax so that I might recuperate swiftly in time for Sunday.’
Fans quickly rallied around Ekin-Su, wishing her a swift recovery and crossing their fingers that she would be ready for the first show.
Fortunately, lover Davide Sancliment was on hand to play nurse, with the Ekin-Su posting a photo of the Italian stallion tending to her and captioning the post, ‘Someone’s home with the fever…in excellent hands nonetheless.’
Christopher Dean breaks bone in skating accident
As Olympic medalist Christopher, 64, observed, even seasoned pros are not immune to the occasional mishap.
The judge stated that he had broken a bone while attempting to do a particularly intricate technique known as the Iron Lotus.
‘We were trying the Iron Lotus, but ended up executing a Half Nelson,’ he said on Twitter. Or did I merely trip over a suitcase in the dead of night?’
Christopher had previously posted a photo of his bandaged little finger with the remark, ‘Yes broken.’
Joey Essex nearly loses a finger
The Towie star revealed that he became overly ambitious and slashed his finger during practises.
‘So today was my first day training with my professional before I get put with my partner,’ the reality TV star explained in a video posted to his Instagram account.
‘It went well and the first two days I got on the ice and saw what we could do,’ before revealing that his enthusiasm backfired.
He continued: ‘I think being a risk taker is going to be an advantage of mine but I don’t think it was an advantage on day one or two because I’ve ended up with a metal finger,’ he said, holding up his left middle finger to the screen, showing it all wrapped up.
‘I’m lucky I’ve still got my finger to be honest, but I’ve got to deal with this now,’ he added.
Michelle Heaton blaming menopause for whiplash
On Loose Women, the Liberty X singer, 43, opened up about her brutal-sounding training, exposing the depth of her injuries.
Michelle claimed she fell over four times in one day, resulting in whiplash on her neck.
The singer blamed the menopause for her accidents, explaining: ‘I had four falls on Monday. Do you know what it is? It’s forgetting you’re on ice.
‘Like I’m calling it menopausal brain fog.’
Michelle, who has previously spoken about having an early menopause, added: ‘[It’s] because I just stand there and the falls usually come when I’m standing still and I forget that I’m not in shoes and my feet just go and I’m on my back.’
Dancing On Ice begins on ITV1 on Sunday January 15 at 6.30pm.