Dancing On Ice star Joey Essex leans in to KISS partner Vanessa Bauer during their live performance – as he returns to the ice despite nasty injury
Joey Essex left fans shocked as he appeared on Sunday evening’s Dancing On Ice, after suffering a nasty injury during rehearsals earlier in the week.
And the former TOWIE star seemed to give his dance partner Vanessa Bauer quite the surprise too, as he leaned in for a smooch at the end of their performance.
Following a wave of romance rumours, he appeared to confirm the claims as they closed off their performance – planting a kiss on the professional’s lips.
But slightly more hesitant, Vanessa laughed and leaned away from Joey as she appeared flustered by the gesture.
Joey suffered a nasty injury just one day before, taking to Instagram to share a snap of his bandaged up leg as he admitting to having ‘seen better days’.
Love is in the air: Joey Essex leaned in to kiss his hesitant skating partner Vanessa Bauer during their LIVE Dancing On Ice performance on Sunday evening
Ouch! Joey managed to make the ice, despite suffering a painful injury just one day prior during a dress rehearsal for the show
Top form: He confidently skated onto the Dancing On Ice rink, despite sparking concern that he wouldn’t manage due to injury
But in an impressive and quick recovery, he confidently skated onto the ice with partner Vanessa as the show’s Movie Week kicked off.
And this week, it’s not just the routine that they have to nail down, as the stars have also been set a Judges Challenge this week.
They will need to complete a freestyle jump with two feet leaving the ice during the routine, with the panel prompting them to ‘get creative’.
The contestants were all introduced at the beginning of the show, with Joey flashing a huge smile and waving out to the audience as he skated onto the ice.
Showing he was on form, the reality star even did a little jump while holding onto Vanessa’s hips.
Judging panel Jayne Torvill, Christopher Dean, Oti Mabuse and Ashley Banjo were back in the hot seats for the sixth week of the competition, as hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield were rinkside.
And for his performance, the reality star chanellled Zac Efron as he and Vanessa did a High School Musical themed routine.
Attempting the Judges’ Challenge jump, Joey did manage to get both feet off the ice and back on safely – with a slight wobble on the landing.
But it was the end of the live performance that had fans talking, as Joey leaned in to kiss Vanessa on the lips while on the ice – with the brunette backing away and laughing.
Skating over to the judges, the pair revealed that their routine had to be tweaked slightly due to Joey’s injury, which happened during a dress rehearsal earlier in the week.
Injuries, choreography tweaks and kisses aside, the TV personality still managed to bag 32.5 out of 40 points for the well-executed performance.
And as the judges brought up his moment of romance, Joey laughed it off and said: ‘First kiss on live TV, eh?’
The pair have been linked romantically since beginning Dancing On Ice rehearsals and have been spotted spending an increased amount of time together.
Charcters: Joey and Vanessa channelled their inner Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens with a High School Musical themed routine
Differnt pages: Vanessa appeared less keen to take their rumoured relationship as public as Joey did
The only way is Essex! Joey looked the part as he was clad in a cream tracksuit, with Essex written in red on the back
Opener: First up on to perform on the ice was The Vivienne, who chanelled Mary Poppins for the performance with partner Colin Grafton
Super! And bagging an impressive 26 points out of 40, all four judges gave a high score of nine
Danger zone: Next up was Darren Harriett and partner Tippy Packard, who scored 28.5 out of 40 points for his Top Gun inspired performance to Kenny Loggins’ Danger Zone
Livin’ it: The pair got into character as they were both clad in leather ensembles for the movie performance
First up on to perform on the ice was The Vivienne, who chanelled Mary Poppins for the performance with partner Colin Grafton.
And bagging an impressive 26 points out of 40, all four judges gave a high score of nine.
Oti shared: ‘You look beautiful, you skated beautiful, I love you!, while Shirley echoed: ‘I absolutely loved it and i wish you would do it again’.
Next up was Darren Harriett and partner Tippy Packard, who scored 28.5 out of 40 points for his Top Gun inspired performance to Kenny Loggins’ Danger Zone.
Ashley Banjo was the most genorous of the panel as he scored the TV personality 7.5 points out of 10, while the other three judges offered a respectable 7 each.
Noting that he did attempt the Judges’ Challenge but didn’t quite nail it, Shirley explained: ‘The jump was quite tiny’.
While constructive criticism was given out, Ashley did dub the performance ‘the cleanest yet’ from Darren, who found himself in the bottom two last week.
Dancing On Ice week 6 scoreboard
The Vivienne and Colin Grafton – 36 points out of 40
Carley Stenson and Mark Hanretty – 36 points out of 40
Nile Wilson and Olivia Smart – 35 points out of 40
Siva Kaneswaran and Klabera Komini – 32.5 points out of 40
Joey Essex and Vanessa Bauer – 32.5 points out of 40
Mollie Gallagher and Sylvain Longchambon – 30 points out of 40
Darren Harriett and Tippy Packard – 28.5 points out of 40
Something strange? Next, it was Mollie Gallagher and Sylvain Longchambon, who were out to bust some supernatural activity as they took on a Ghostbusters inspired performance
Not delighted: The Coronation Street actress admitted she was slightly disappointed as she got a 7.5 from each judge, scoring a total of 30 points
He’s in the building! Later, Siva Kaneswaran channelled icon Elvis Presley as he performed with partner Klabera Komini
Back on form: The Wanted singer’s routine came after he was forced to have a week off of the show last week, coming back fighting fit for this Sunday’s performance
High score: And following the retro performance, Siva scored 32.5 out of 40 points as he received a mix of 8 and 8.5 scores from the judges
Next, it was Mollie Gallagher and Sylvain Longchambon, who were out to bust some supernatural activity as they took on a Ghostbusters inspired performance.
The Coronation Street actress was given a 7.5 from each judge, scoring a total of 30 points.
But she appeared dissapointed with the score, as Shirley admitted she agreed and ‘expected more’ from Mollie.
Later, Siva Kaneswaran channelled icon Elvis Presley as he performed with partner Klabera Komini.
The Wanted singer’s routine came after he was forced to have a week off of the show last week, coming back fighting fit for this Sunday’s performance.
And following the retro performance, Siva scored 32.5 out of 40 points as he received a mix of 8 and 8.5 scores from the judges.
Carley Stenson and Mark Hanretty were next, with the former receiving her highest score of the series as she matched The Vivienna with 36 out of 40 points.
Going for a Toy Story themed performance, the soap star and her partner were dressed as toy characters Woody and Jesse from the film franchise.
‘That was so, so clean, It was like, flawless. It was subtle and detailed, I think you guys are incredible,’ praised Ashley.
Toy Story: Carley Stenson and Mark Hanretty were next, with the former receiving her highest score of the series as she matched The Vivienna with 36 out of 40 points
Super spy: Nile Wilson and Olivia Smart then took to the ice with a top-secret spy performance, dodging and jumping from laser beams as he made his way across the rink
Strong skater: Scoring 35 out of 40 points from the judges, Jane noted that while his strong skating is nice to see, she was looking for more couple skating between the Olympian and Olivia
Nile Wilson and Olivia Smart then took to the ice with a top-secret spy performance, dodging and jumping from laser beams as he made his way across the rink.
His Judges’ Challenge jump appeared one of the most creative as Nile used his gymnast skills for the move.
Scoring 35 out of 40 points from the judges, Jane noted that while his strong skating is nice to see, she was looking for more couple skating between the Olympian and Olivia.
After the contestants had all performed, Ashley then brought his dance crew Diversity onto the ice as they gave an energetic performance.
And for the first time since joining the show five years ago, the judge even took to the ice himself as he performed his moves while skating.
While dancemate Perri Kiely even performed a backflip on the ice as he showed off his skills.
DANCING ON ICE 2023: MEET THE CONTESTANTS
PATSY PALMER
AGE: 50
PROFESSION: Actress and DJ
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve turned it down before because I was terrified, but when I turned 50 I made a pact to get out of my confront zone. ‘
EKIN-SU CULCULOGLU
AGE: 28
PROFESSION: Love Island star
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve got some amazing news to tell you. I’m so excited, I can’t wait to get myself on the ice and skate. Stay tuned and see you on the ice.’
MOLLIE GALLAGHER
AGE: 24
PROFESSION: Actress
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve not got the best coordination so when people find out they will laugh, but I don’t want to spend my life saying “I can’t do this, I can’t do that.”
JOEY ESSEX
AGE: 32
PROFESSION: Ex TOWIE star
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’m so excited. I wanted something in my life with structure and it’s more serious than what I usually do.’
CARLEY STENSON
AGE: 36
PROFESSION: Actress and West End star
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’m so excited that I get to learn how to dance…on ice! I’m terrified but can’t wait – I just want to make the most of this whole experience.’
SIVA KANESWARAN
AGE: 33
PROFESSION: Singer
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I want to learn how to skate and make my family proud of me and put on a show for everyone to see.’
JOHN FASHANU
AGE: 60
PROFESSION: Former footballer and pundit
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I am definitely in it to win it.And this may be one of the scariest things I’ve ever signed up for but I couldn’t be more ready for the challenge!’
NILE WILSON
AGE: 26
PROFESSION: Olympic gymnast
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve not done much ice-skating but I am so excited for the opportunity. I’m so excited to get into that routine and to feel like an athlete again.’
JAMES LEE WILLIAM AKA THE VIVIENNE
AGE: 29
PROFESSION: Drag queen
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘To be the first drag artist to take part in one of the big UK reality competition shows is an honour and a big step forward for queer representation on TV.’
DARREN HARRIOT
PROFESSION: Comedian
AGE: 34
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve got giant feet, I don’t skate and I can’t dance. My family has already made bets – they’re making bets that I’ll fall on the first episode!’
MICHELLE HEATON
AGE: 43
PROFESSION: Singer
WHAT DID THEY SAY?: ‘I’ve always wanted to do it but I know I would never have been able to complete anything because of the way I was 18 months ago, so I’m really truly grateful that I’ve got it this year when I’m a lot stronger.’
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