Holly Willoughby to return as presenter of Dancing on Ice
Holly Willoughby is to return to ITV to present Dancing On Ice, the broadcaster has announced.
Stephen Mulhern will replace Phillip Schofield, who left ITV earlier this year after he admitted having an affair with a younger former colleague on This Morning.
Schofield had presented the ice skating competition alongside Willoughby since 2006.
Willoughby has been absent from screens since she also left This Morning in October following 14 years on the sofa.
Her departure came after it emerged she was the target of an alleged kidnap and murder plot. A man has appeared in court charged with offences connected to the allegations and a trial is fixed for the new year.
This followed an already turbulent time on the flagship morning show following Schofield’s departure and much speculation about the state of Willoughby and Schofield’s working relationship.
An independent KC-led investigation found Schofield’s “patronage” of the younger colleague he was having an affair with clearly assisted the man’s early career at ITV before he then “made his way on his own”.
The This Morning presenter quit after admitting that he had lied about an “unwise, but not illegal” affair, amid allegations that ITV bosses had turned a blind eye to his relationship with the co-worker, who was a runner on the show.
Jane Mulcahy KC, who interviewed 48 people for the review, found that neither ITV management or This Morning’s senior staff knew about the affair until Schofield’s statement, while only one former junior employee said they had known, but they had not reported it.
The new line-up on Dancing On Ice marks a reunion for Willoughby and Mulhern after they first worked together on Saturday morning children’s show Ministry Of Mayhem 20 years ago.
The show was later titled Holly & Stephen’s Saturday Showdown.
Katie Rawcliffe, head of entertainment commissioning at ITV, said: “Holly and Stephen are two of our best-loved presenters, so reuniting them 20 years after they first appeared on screen together to host Dancing On Ice marks the start of an exciting year for the show.”
Mulhern briefly hosted alongside Willoughby on the ITV skating competition in 2022 after Schofield tested positive for Covid.
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Judges Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, Ashley Banjo and Oti Mabuse will also return to Dancing On Ice, with former world champion boxer Ricky Hatton, Coronation Street actress Claire Sweeney, singer Hannah Spearritt, West End star Amber Davies and Olympian Greg Rutherford among the stars taking part.
TV personality Miles Nazaire, comedian and writer Lou Sanders, actor Ricky Norwood, radio presenter Adele Roberts, actor Ryan Thomas and Emmerdale’s Roxy Shahidi will also compete.
Former Gogglebox star Stephen Lustig-Webb was due to feature but was forced to pull out after breaking his left ankle during ice skating training, with Olympian Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards taking his place.
Dancing On Ice returns to ITV in January.
