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Daily Record
Daily Record
Entertainment
Kirsten McStay & Katherine Heslop

Inside Dancing On Ice star Christopher Dean's family life and past romances

Christopher Dean has been involved in popular show Dancing on Ice since 2006, alongside his Olympic partner Jayne Torvill.

It's often thought that the skating double act, who scooped gold at the 1984 Winter Olympics, are a couple, but they have actually never been an item.

When they were teenagers however, they did once share a kiss on the back of a bus but nothing else romantic occurred between them, they just had an amazing friendship, writes The Mirror.

Jayne has been married to her husband Phil Christensen for more than 25 years, and 64-year-old Christopher has been in a relationship with Dancing on Ice coach Karen Barber for over ten years.

However, Christopher's love life has not always been smooth sailing.

Between 1991 and 1993, he was married to French-Canadian World ice dance champion Isabelle Duchesnay, however they divorced as Isabelle was always jealous of skating partner Jayne, calling her the "other women in their marriage."

Christopher married Isabelle Duchesnay in 1991, but they split after two years (Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

One year later, he went on to marry American skater Jill Trenary, the mother of his two sons, Sam and Jack, and the family resided in Colorado Springs.

However in 2010, it was confirmed that Christopher and Jill had separated, but Christopher revealed that the pair were still 'best friends'.

Following their separation, Chris then split his time between the US and UK, he said: "That’s the good thing. We’re not at war. We’re actually friends.

"In Colorado, I now live a minute’s walk away from them and go round every day. I pick the boys up for school. Get them ready. Bring them home from school. We are best friends.”

According to reports, the couple's sons, who are now in their twenties, are still living in America.

In 2013, it was announced that Chris was in a relationship with former Dancing on Ice judge Karen Barber.

News of their romance broke just months after Karen's marriage to skating coach Stephen Pickavance, who is the father of her daughter, ended after 21 years together.

Christopher and Karen Barber have been together since 2011 (Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Karen was one of the original Dancing on Ice judges, and was on panel until the 2011 when she became head coach.

When the show returned in 2018, Karen remained as a skating coach.

Christopher and Jayne's friendship and partnership has been strong for 49 years and has translated into an "unspoken connection" and "sixth sense" on and off the ice, he said recently.

He said: "It's funny that I'll pick up the phone and call Jayne and she'll just say, at that moment, 'I was just going to call you'."

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