Dancing On Ice 2022 will reportedly be welcoming top choreographer and former Strictly Come Dancing judge Arlene Phillips to the panel later this month.
On Sunday, Feb. 20 Arlene will be joining fellow judges Ashley Banjo, Jayne Torvill, Christopher Dean, and newcomer Oti Mabuse, who replaced former judge John Barrowman.
Her one-off appearance commemorates the first time that the ITV show will have five judges. A TV insider revealed to The Sun: “ITV have been keen to get Arlene on board and have been talking to her for months about her guest slot on the show.
“She has decades of dance experience under her belt which producers wanted to draw on and enhance the panel even further. Plus, audiences will be thrilled to see her back judging on primetime TV, just as she once was on Strictly.”
A spokeswoman for ITV, also said to The Sun: “We’re looking forward to having Dame Arlene on the show - a very special, special guest for Dancing on Ice.”
The 78-year-old showbiz legend has used her judging expertise on many programmes over the years, including, So You Think You Can Dance, Strictly Dance Fever, DanceX, and Let’s Dance For Comic Relief. She has also directed and choreographed routines for huge theatre shows, such as We Will Rock You, Grease, and The Sound of Music to name a few.
Arlene left Strictly in 2008 after four years on the show and recently took part in I’m A Celebrity 2021 and was the oldest ever contestant to appear on the series.
Sadly, Arlene was the first to leave the camp after votes opened for the public to choose who to save. She said she'd wanted to challenge herself and prove she's fearless and was congratulated by hosts Ant and Dec for being the oldest ever campmate.
Dancing On Ice airs this Sunday at 6pm on ITV and ITV Hub — see our TV Guide for full listings.
Episodes of Strictly Come Dancing are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
