Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean will take to the ice for the final time as they perform on the Dancing on Ice rink, after confirming they will retire after 50 years
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean will stun the crowd with their last-ever performance on Dancing on Ice, drawing the curtain on an extraordinary 50-year skating journey.
The pre-recorded yet emotional showcase of the legendary duo, whose careers were punctuated by their gold-medal victory at the 1984 Winter Olympics with the unforgettable Bolero routine, moved everyone to tears as they officially announced their retirement from performing.
Set to take their final bow with the upcoming UK arena tour aptly named Our Last Dance, the couple performed their farewell routine, which was exclusively choreographed for the Dancing on Ice finale and will also be a highlight of their concluding performances on tour. Time constraints necessitated the pre-recording of the act, allowing the pair to meticulously refine each movement.
Referencing his age and the duration of their careers, 66 year old Christopher shared: “We’ve been doing it a long time and people our age shouldn’t be doing it now, so we’re just happy that we can still do it.”
In a heartfelt interview, he revealed to The Sun: “This will be our last live skate on Dancing on Ice because we’re doing our final tour this year. So once we’ve finished our last skate on the tour, we won’t be performing again.”
Despite hanging up their skates, Jayne, 67, and Christopher will continue to be a part of Dancing on Ice as judges. They reassured fans that they’ll still play an active role in the show, mentoring and supporting the upcoming generation of ice dancers.
The pair told The Mirror in an exclusive interview last year that they were hanging up their skates, 40 years on from their rise to stardom. In our chat, Jayne and Christopher revealed they were sticking with ITV’s Dancing On Ice while hanging up their skates as far as competing and tours are concerned. Reflecting on the decision to draw things to a close, Chris said: “I think there comes a time when you know. We’re not spring chickens any more, but we’re still able to do it to a certain degree we feel good about it, but that will go.”
“This is the right time for us to be able to do that and go and skate and do some of the old routines, be very nostalgic, but then do some new fun, upbeat [dances] with friends of ours from the skating world and from Dancing On Ice. We’ll have a sense of pride as well, I think, of what we’ve done. I think we’ll get reflective and look at it not in a sad way but in a happy way.”
Away from the ice, both are looking forward to some well-deserved downtime. Jayne disclosed her plans to spend more time in Spain with her husband, Phil Christensen, while Christopher and his partner, Karen, plan to explore the UK in their motorhome.
The iconic duo Torvill and Dean first joined forces in 1975 and rapidly rose to become Britain’s most adored ice dancers. Their gold-medal-winning performance at the Sarajevo Olympics in 1984 is etched in the annals of sporting history. The pair made a comeback to amateur competition in 1994, bagging a bronze medal. Their impact on British ice dancing has been unmatched, and their legacy will live on through Dancing on Ice and the numerous skaters they have inspired.
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