Michelle Heaton has shared a fresh video message to her fans and followers after becoming the second celebrity to be eliminated from Dancing On Ice. The Liberty X singer was given the boot from the ITV skating competition after a night full of live musicals-themed performances.
Sunday night's show (January 29) also featured a 'brutal' twist as hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield revealed right at the start of the episode the news there would be no skate-off and that it would be the judges' scores combined with the public vote that would decide who would leave the contest.
And it was Michelle, 43, who failed to impress with her skating routine to All That Jazz from Chicago alongside her professional partner Lukasz Rozycki. "I’m just really gutted," she said after the announcement was made.
"I’ve loved every second of it and I loved everything that I just did there." The emotional star then turned to her skating partner and added: "This man has just been amazing and I couldn’t have done anything without you. I’m just so sorry that it’s cut short."
And fans were equally fuming by the results. Those tuning into the latest episode were already unimpressed when Michelle and Lukasz's routine only scored 20 points out of a possible 40 from the judges. Then many were disappointed when the pair were sent home over EastEnders legend Patsy Palmer, who was near the bottom of the leaderboard in Musicals Week and just above Michelle with 20.5 despite a fall in her routine.
@MichelleSteer9 tweeted: "This show is not about dancing on ice. It is about popularity. How the hell did Patsy get through over Michelle when she fell over?" @HiftleJanice demanded: "ITV... explanations, please. So unfair. She may not be the best skater but she was way better than Patsy Palmer and Ekin Su. Shame on you judges!" And @sambates1597 said: "I'm glad Patsy got through and I did vote for her but DOI did do michelle dirty!"
Following the end of the show, Michelle took to Instagram with a video message alongside her children - daughter Faith, 10, and son AJ, eight - who were quick to say they were 'sad' about their mum's elimination from Dancing on Ice. "Aw guys, I'm absolutely gutted," she said as her son replied: "I'm so sad!"
"I'm not going to lie, I'm gutted," Michelle continued. "I wasn't ready to go but thank you so much for all your support and yeah, bye Dancing on Ice! It's been amazing and I'll see you at the final." She then got her kids and husband Hugh Hanley to say by to Dancing on Ice before the video ended.
"What a ride … i didn’t want it to end. Heartbroken," Michelle then wrote in the caption. "Though hear me when I say, i am overwhelmed with the support on this platform & others, I hear the frustration .. trust me, i am sad too. But guys, as one door closes another must open coz it’s the only way! We get up dust ourselves off and fight for the next dream."
She went on: "I hope I’ve done you all proud. Thank you for @dancingonice for having me and @icelukasz .. what can I say? My journey was filled with joy, and laughter and many f**ks. You rock babes, you & @alex_lukasz friendship has the world to me and my family." Confirming she'd be taking a break, Michelle concluded: "Over and out for a few days … me."
But she was quickly flooded with support. Linda Nolan replied: "Absolutely ROBBED!!! so sad to see you go, but you should be so proud of yourself - we’re all so proud of you." Anthea Turner commented: "Adore you, you shouldn’t have gone but…… now you need to play Velma Kelly for real but without knives strapped to your shoes !! Music."
@julieannhunter said: "Gutted for you. Felt you were under marked and definitely shouldn’t have gone. You should feel very proud of yourself." @claireyjanex wrote: "You done really amazing and should be proud!" @sallystephens1512 commented: "Your a beautiful lady x you should have stayed." @christine.nye.140 added: "You shouldn't of gone last night . I'm absolutely heart broken . You was amazing on the ice."
Meanwhile, Michelle also re-shared a number of 'p****d off' tweets after her latest performance was scored on the programme. One said: "Totally under marked. I’m actually a bit p***ed off on your behalf!", and another which read: "Massively under marked!! It’s getting hard to watch now as she was way better than a few others by a mile!! Keep going girl."
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