THEY may only be mid-way through the Dancing On Ice 2011 Tour – but Christopher Dean already knows there will be another next year.
"I can confirm there will be a sixth series," says the 52-year-old, sat in an office at the Capital FM Arena, in a tight black T-shirt that reveals his muscular frame.
Next to him is Jayne Torvill, also in black and more petite than she appears on screen. Obviously the months of work involved in the TV series and UK tour keep them in shape but I suggest their training doesn't stop once it's all over.
"We're very active people anyway," says Torvill, 53, who lives in Sussex with husband Phil Christensen and their two children.
If they hadn't returned to the spotlight with Dancing On Ice and could happily do what they liked, would they be cracking open a tin of ale and feasting on pasties?
"No," smiles Torvill.
Dean seems wary. Either that or he's otherwise occupied, mentally preparing for the shows that lay ahead. Last week there were two and tomorrow there'll be two more as they return to the venue to advise, train and co-ordinate the routines of the celebrities from the latest series.
Does Dean like to take control and is his partner happy with that?
"Well, we both sit down with the producers and work out what we're going to be doing on each tour," interjects Dean.
"We're both equally involved," acknowledges Torvill, who was working at an insurance office off the Old Market Square when she and the former Notts policeman began training together at the former Ice Stadium.
As before, the pair take to the ice at each show and demonstrate how it's done. For the past two years it has been a new interpretation of Bolero, the routine which won them nine perfect sixes from the judges at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics.
"Not this year," says Dean. "We're resting Bolero. Although Vanilla Ice is doing his own unique interpretation."
They've come a long way since the Olympic Gold made them household names and Nottingham heroes.
"It's always nice coming home," says Dean, who still lives in Colorado despite splitting from his second wife, skater Jill Trenary, last year. The couple have two sons.
They still call Nottingham home but he and Torvill only visit with Dancing On Ice.
"I only have extended family here now," he says. "But it's still a special place for us, of course."
Comfortable with the attention his on-ice skills have brought is Sam Attwater, who follows them in to the room.
The former EastEnders actor is the reason that, when I pass the Lace Market Hotel, where the tour cast stay every time they come to the city, there are two dozen girls waiting patiently on the steps of the Galleries of Justice.
"That's nice," says Attwater, 26. "I did say hello.
"I didn't expect to win, no," he says of his victory in the ITV1 series that guaranteed his place on the tour.
"And I don't expect to win every night of the tour either."
Other stars on the tour include Chloe Madeley, Dave Vitty, Laura Hamilton, Denise Welch, Johnson Beharry and Hayley Tamaddon.
The tour returns to the Capital FM Arena tomorrow, with shows at 2.30pm and 7.30pm. Tickets are �32.50 to �57.50. Call 0844 412 4624 or visit dancingonicetour.co.uk.
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