Dancing on Ice hopeful Brendan Cole has said the BBC should replace half of the Strictly Come Dancing judging panel and has volunteered his own services for the job after leaving the show in 2018.
The former Strictly star, who is one of the remaining celebrities in this year’s Dancing On Ice, has also weighed in on the Anton Du Bek and Bruno Tonioli debate after reports emerged that the show is axing the 66-year-old to keep his pro dancer replacement.
Brendan told the Loose Women panel during an interview on Thursday’s instalment of the show that he is in Anton’s camp as he believes he is “fresh” for the hit BBC dancing competition.
He added: “I think he’s done a great job. I’d like him to be a bit more constructively critical. I think he’s a bit too nice, but maybe he’s being that way because he wants the seat.”
He then continued: “I think it’s a good job on the panel. I think it needs a mix-up. I think, hey, get rid of half of them.”
The Loose Women panel erupted in laughter at the remark as Brendan cheekily pretended to run away.
When host Kaye Adams asked whether he would join the judging panel himself he immediately replied to say he would, noting that he was a judge on the New Zealand version of the show, Dancing with the Stars, for five years.
He said: “I enjoyed the experience. You never get voted off, which is always lovely, and you get to give the couples something they can bring back.
“That’s something that misses on the show for me on Strictly is the fact that you want to work on something for next week and they’re saying ‘Next time you do a Rumba do this’ but they’re never going to do a Rumba again. It’s giving them something they can take away.”
The New Zealand-born dance pro took part in Strictly for 15 seasons and won out of the gate with BBC newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky.
He made the final a further two times with Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Lisa Snowdon, but gained a reputation as a ‘bad boy’ on the show after a number of spats.
When host Kaye asked who his favourite judge on the BBC show is, he said it had to be Craig Revel Horwood because of his “energy”.
He said: “I like the fact that he’s not always nice. I love Shirley as well, funnily enough, even though we’ve had our little moments on the show.
“She knows her stuff and she’s a good judge on the show. Craig has that thing - you really don’t know if he’s going to be horrible or nice, but the horrible is always with a nice cheeky grin.”
Loose Women airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV
