Dancing on Ice star Vanessa Bauer has spoken out after she missed out on winning the ITV skating competition alongside Joey Essex. The pair, who have been subject to romance rumours but are yet to officially confirm if they are an item, competed together for the last time on Sunday night (March 12).
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield were back rinkside as they prepared to crown the 2023 winners after several weeks of performances and eliminations. Judges Oti Mabuse, Ashley Banjo, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean were back on the ice panel to cast an expert eye but the final result was all down to the show's viewers.
Nile Wilson, Joey Essex, and The Vivienne all went head-to-head in a bid to lift the Dancing on Ice trophy and follow in the winning footsteps of 2022 winner Regan Gascoigne and 2021 champ Sonny Jay. The three finalists all skated an original, 'showcase' routine which had been choreographed by skating legends Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean before taking part in a skate battle to whittle the competition down from three to two remaining contestants.
READ MORE: ITV Dancing on Ice fans share same complaint over 2023 final as winner crowned
After all the finalists had performed their first dance, they were neck and neck having all secured perfect 40s. But it was The Vivienne who was voted off before getting the chance to perform their version of Torvill and Dean's iconic Bolero with professional partner Colin Grafton.
It was left to retired Olympic gymnast Nile and his partner Olivia Smart and reality star Joey and his partner Vanessa Bauer to perform their own reimagining of the Olympic-winning routine in a bid to be crowning the Dancing on Ice 2023 champion.
And it was Nile and Olivia Smart who emerged victorious following the dazzling final, with Phillip revealing more than a million votes had been cast. After being announced as the winner, 27-year-old Nile said: "If Dancing On Ice has anything to say of entertainment, we’ve got 11 human beings all different shapes and sizes stood on this stage tonight with an allocated time to get good at something and we proved that we can do that.
"So what an inspirational show. If you put your mind to something and you work hard you can achieve anything you want." He also thanked everyone who voted for them and said he will be spending the night celebrating with the people who he "loves the most".
Former The Only Way is Essex star Joey, 32, congratulated the couple following their win, saying: "I’m so happy for Nile and Olivia. I missed a few steps but literally, the best time of my life, thank you, everyone."
He had earlier described the show as “the best experience I’ve ever had in my life” after he received a perfect score after donning a white toga to embody the Greek hero Hercules for his first grand finale routine, which saw him perform a walkover and a backflip with his skating partner Vanessa.
But after they recreated Torvill and Dean's famous Olympic gold medal-winning performance of the Bolero, fans agreed that Vanessa couldn't seem to hide her disappointment and they also thought they had clocked Vanessa mouthing instructions to Joey during their Bolero.
Voters seemed to agree that his performance fell short as Nile went on to lift the trophy. @DavidMackayy tweeted: "Vanessa was talking him through what to do, very clumsy." And @petalthepeeg wrote: "He looked like he forgot half of that. You could see it on Vanessa's face." @Geordiebird51 said: "Terrible, you could see Vanessa talking him through it …" And @sofiepuff89 added: "The disappointment all over Vanessa’s face."
However, Vanessa has now spoken out in an Instagram post shared to her Instagram Stories on Monday morning (March 13). Reposting Dancing on Ic'e social media announcement that she and Joey finished in second place, using a picture from their Bolero routine, the professional skater typed: "We made it all the way to the Bolero!!!"
She went on to say: "Thanks to your support. We couldn't be more grateful. It was our most skillful skate to date and we were over the moon to perform it. Unfortunaltly, it didn't quite go as planned but we got through it!!!" Vanessa continued to praise her partner despite his misteps.
"@joeyessex smahsed the whole series, words can't explain how proud I am of him. He literally couldn't have put in more work and passion into this show. I'm so happy this series happened and can't wait to share out dress rehearsal Bolero."
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