ITV’s Dancing On Ice 2023 begins this weekend - will we see Ekin-Su’s return to television?

The thrills and spills of ITV’s celebrity ice skating show Dancing On Ice return to television screens this weekend with many eyes focused squarely on one contestant - former Love Island contestant Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu.

There have been concerns in the late stages of this week that the 28-year-old may not be able to make an appearance on the first live show of the new series, airing on January 15, as she currently is battling a fever. This is according to her boyfriend, fellow Love Island contestant Davide Sanclimenti.

Taking to Instagram to share a photo of the pair, Sanclimenti wrote that Ekin-Su was in “good hands”, while Ekin-Su herself shared with fans on Twitter that she was “very ill. Doctors have told me to rest. Hopefully, I can recover very quickly ready for Sunday.” The Love Island contestant shared earlier in the week that she was suffering from the flu “for a month now! Not what you need for the live show Sunday! Need to rest.”

Ekin-Su’s participation this Sunday isn’t the only doubt either, as Christopher Dean was taken to hospital after falling over at home on Thursday. The judge, part of the world-renowned skating duo Torvill and Dean with partner Jane Torvill, posted on social media his broken finger bandaged up.

“We were trying the Iron Lotus, but ended up doing a Half Nelson” he joked, before revealing the real cause of his injury: “or did I just fall over a suitcase in the middle of the night." The injury adds more credence to Dancing on Ice host Philip Schofield’s concerns about the extent of the injuries that occur during the production of the show.

“Please don’t hurt yourself," the host allegedly asked the celebrity contestants for the 15th series of the reality show. "Please don’t fall over in a way that prevents you from actually doing the show! First and foremost, learn how to fall because it’s so easy to forget that this is a really dangerous show. Those skates are blades! We’ve seen some horrible injuries so that is the last thing you want. Skate within your means until your pro says you can go beyond that."

Dancing On Ice returns to ITV 1 on Sunday January 15 2022 from 6.30pm until 8pm and will be available to stream on ITVX, alongside catching up with previous seasons of of the reality contest.

Who is competiting in Dancing on Ice 2023?

Siva Kaneswaran

Michelle Heaton

Carley Stenson

Darren Harriott

Joey Essex

The Vivienne

Mollie Gallagher

Nile Wilson

Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu

John Fashanu

Patsy Palmer