World’s most famous ice skating double act head to SSE for the ‘Last Dance’ before hanging up skates for good
The famous duo said it was crucial to include Belfast on their farewell tour because of their long association with the city throughout their career.
Now they are set to get their skates on to head to the SSE Arena and such is their huge fanbase here, they will take to the ice for three shows over two consecutive dates on April 15 and 16.
The pair sat down with Sunday Life backstage at the venue to talk about their career as they celebrate 50 years together as friends and ice dancing partners.
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean in Belfast promoting their tour last year
Chris (66) told us: “When we first came here we stayed in the Europa and they did talk about, ‘You’re going to stay at the most bombed hotel in Europe’.
“But having said that, nothing has ever put us off and we have always loved Belfast — the people are so genuine and lovely. They’re really warm audiences. And we really love being here.
“We stayed then at the Culloden and that felt sort of like a really nostalgic hotel, going back in time there. And now we’re at the Titanic Hotel and the history behind that is quite amazing.”
Chris also joked that Jane (67) is always talking about going back to historic city centre pub The Crown, to which she chipped in: “Yes! The old pub with the great Guinness!”
It was at the Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics that they suddenly became household names after winning gold and becoming the highest-scoring figure skaters of all time after famously skating to Maurice Ravel’s Boléro.
But over the past two decades they have enjoyed a second chapter in their career thanks to roles as judges in hit ITV reality telly series Dancing on Ice, which has also had some local links over the years.
Zoe Salmon competed on ITV’s Dancing on Ice
Newtownards-born broadcaster Christine Lampard took over co-hosting duties from Holly Willoughby for three series between 2012 and 2014, with Jayne telling us she
was “great” to work with and Chris adding: “She’s lovely as well, with a good sense of humour.”
And in 2009 ex-Blue Peter presenter Zoe Salmon starred as a contestant, as well as joining them on the follow-up tour which again made sure to include the SSE Arena on its itinerary.
Chris said: “She was a good competitor. Didn’t she skate with Matt (Evers)? Actually, we were just at UTV talking to Pamela (Ballantine), and she was telling us it was Zoe’s little son (Fitz), that met the King when he came over here (in March).”
But it will largely be celebrating their earlier career as elite sportspeople that will be the focus of Our Last Dance, their 50th anniversary tour this year, before they hang up their skates for good.
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean strike a pose on the ice during the media call for Torvill And Dean’s 50th anniversary tour
Watch: Niamh Campbell takes staking lesson with Torvill and Dean
Fans can expect to see them mark the pinnacle moment of their Olympic gold by dancing to Boléro in what will be one of the last live performances of the iconic routine they will ever do together.
When they performed it in 1984, it became one of the most-watched television events ever in UK history — with an audience of more than 24 million people gripped by the dramatic and emotional display which Jayne said, “people could relate to”.
Chris explained further: “I think from our point of view, it was the boy and girl dynamic. The emotional side of that moment, that changed it. It wasn’t just an athletic sport. There was an emotional content.”
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean
The double act are still planning the routines, choreography and production for Our Last Dance, but one thing they can promise is that it will be packed with action and entertainment as they take a trip down memory lane. Chris beamed: “It’s a different show from anything we’ve done before, because it’s going to be like a life story from the beginning when we met, going throughout our career and some iconic moments.
“We’ve got a cast of 15 other skaters with us as well to help us tell that story, and we’ll be talking to the audience as well, and there’ll be lots of multimedia, we’ve got some big screens. And we want it to be a celebration out there, so that’s what we’re hoping.
“So we think it’ll be a lot of nostalgia as well. I think we want to take people back when they were in the 70s, and then the 80s and up until today.
The pair at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, where they won gold
“It’s a big responsibility. I mean, putting a tour together, when you think about all the content that we want to use on the screens, we’ve got to do the music, we’ve got to bring all the skaters together. We’ve got to choreograph it. We’ve got to look at all the buildings, through all the rigging that goes up. I mean, it’s rock and roll!
“But we have to stay disciplined when you’re on tour, because each night that audience is coming to see you for the first time potentially, and you want to give the best of yourself every night.”
Jayne added: “We’ve started the planning process. We haven’t got the other bodies yet until after Dancing on Ice, so then we’ll go into full rehearsal, but Chris and I have been doing stuff. We’ll be creating our versions of the routines that we won competitions in.”
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean strike a pose on the ice during the media call for Torvill And Dean’s 50th anniversary tour
Watch: Niamh Campbell takes staking lesson with Torvill and Dean_duplicated
Those Dancing on Ice duties began in earnest this month, with the couple admitting they won’t know if they will be back after that as they will no longer be willing to perform — but hope to get asked back as judges if it returns. Chris said: “All the celebrities are in training right now, as we are, because we’re doing a couple of performances on that as well.
“We are working on that and we’re working on the tour at the same time.
“If Dancing On Ice continues, we will continue to judge, but we won’t be doing any more performing on ice. The skates are off.”
Torvill and Dean en route to Olympics glory in 1984
While the pair face a waiting game to see if their TV job will continue, they said they have no desire to follow in the footsteps of previous contestants like Maura Higgins, who has swapped the ice for the latest series of I’m A Celebrity.
Chris laughed: “No! I don’t think the jungle’s on my radar should I be asked — I’m not keen on eating the bugs…”
Torvill & Dean: Our Last Dance is at Belfast SSE Arena on April 15 and 16. Tickets on sale now from www.torvillanddean.com and www.ticketmaster.ie