ITV Dancing on Ice fans call for format change as 'fix row' erupts
Amber and Simon Skate to Wildest Dreams by Taylor Swift
Dancing On Ice returned on Sunday night for the semi-finals, with the remaining couples edging closer than ever to the finish line.
With couples Amber Davies and Simon Senecal, Miles Nazaire and Vanessa Bauer, Greg Rutherford and Vanessa James, Adele Roberts and Mark Hanretty and Ryan Thomas and Amani Fancy all hoping not to fall at the final hurdle, everything hung on "flying week".
The flying instalment saw each celebrity contestant dangling above the ice to "fly" smoothly with their dance partner, occasionally lifting them up with them so the pair were both gliding above the ice.
Each of the celebrities faced their own struggle adjusting to the challenging new feature, and in the end the judges awarded Amber and Simon the top score of 40.
Adele and Mark were next with 39, while Ryan and Amani achieved 38 and Miles and Vanessa came last with their routine given a score of 36.5.
However, despite being the highest scorers, Davies and Roberts found themselves in the dreaded skate-off. All the while, fans made their thoughts on the themed week clear, with many arguing the "flying" doesn't count as skating and asking for the week to be removed from the series.
The skaters had to learn to 'fly' over the ice
ITV
Others also fumed that Davies' 40 was undeserved, coming to the conclusion the scores were "a fix".
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, many others complained and called for the show to get rid of the themed week. One penned: "Welcome to flying week on #dancingonice but there is no skating. So disappointing #DOI."
"What a waste of an episode tonight #dancingonice," a second fumed while another asked: "Why waste half the show flying when its a skating competition???? #DancingOnIce."
Another pointed out: "I think if the producers pay attention to the publics reactions on social media they wont bring back flying week next year! #dancingonice."
Fans fumed about the flying aspect of the latest show
ITV
"#dancingonice So Ashley says ‘this week isn’t about the skating it’s about what’s going on inside’ really, I thought it was a skating competition, sorry pointless, I’m out," someone else added.
"Semi final was definitely not the right week to have the flying challenge return because no one is demonstrating their skating skills the way they should be at this point. 4x 10s for Amber's performance was unwarranted, she absolutely looked nervous," a different viewer argued.
Some shared their thoughts that the judges' scores had been "fixed," particularly with Davies achieving the highest marks and Nazaire ending up with the lowest.
"How did Amber get 40 for virtually no skating at all? It’s a fix. #DancingOnIce," one fan posted, while several others agreed, with one adding: "Amber 10s .. you are kidding me #dancingonice fix."
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Fans also complained the show had been 'fixed'
ITV
Despite the fix claims, in the end it was Adele and Mark who survived the skate-off, meaning it was time for Amber and Simon to say goodbye to their time in the competition.
Davies had previously commented that she "knew it was coming," and expressed her gratitude for getting so far before presenter Stephen Mulhern reminded her: "You haven't gone yet!"
However, the judges unanimously opted to save Adele and Mark. Host Holly Willoughby told Davies "We've loved having you," lending her condolences.
Davies went on to thank her partner and the whole time on the show, beaming about how the opportunity has changed her life.