Dr Hilary Jones might not have lasted the whole course but during his time on Dancing On Ice he certainly made an impact. Here are his best bits…
Suave, smooth, dashing, charismatic… you’d be forgiven if your thoughts were turning to that of a Hollywood superstar.
But add ‘the love doctor’ and ‘the 007 of the doctor world’ to the list and it might become clearer that the accolades are just some of those awarded to Dr Hilary Jones during his recent adventure on the hit ITV1 show,
Dancing On Ice.
The 56-year-old GMTV doctor was the oldest contestant ever to take part in the show. He also clocked up another record – achieving the lowest total score ever, of just 7.5! But despite his scores being consistently on the low side, Dr Hilary gathered a loyal following of fans and proved immensely popular among his fellow contestants, too. When Hollyoaks actor and fellow contestant, Kieron Richardson, was struggling himself at the beginning of the series, he joked, ‘Everybody loves a doctor, don’t they? I’m thinking I’m in the wrong profession!’
The judging panel, however, weren’t always quite so supportive but, contrary to expectations, it was new judge, Emma Bunton, not baddie Jason Gardiner, who delivered perhaps the iciest remark of all: ‘I don’t think the competition can really start while you’re still here’ she said in week six, even though remarking beforehand that she ‘absolutely adored’ Dr Hilary and claimed he had ‘achieved wonderful things’. So, just how smooth was Dr Hilary on the ice? Here’s our week-by-week, at-a-glance guide…
Week 1: Girls’ week
The boys sat back and relaxed as the girls got the competition started. Emmerdale actress, and eventual winner Hayley Tamaddon topped the leader board and singer Sinitta crashed out. Dr Hilary described the girls’ performances as inspirational. ‘They went out there, they gave it their all. I really admire their courage.’ With regards to his impending performance he added, ‘Not making myself look like a complete idiot would be good. We’ll just see how it goes!’
Week 2: Boys’ week
Dr Hilary and his partner, Alexandra Schauman, danced their first routine to the ’60s classic Everlasting Love. Dr Hilary stayed upright and received praise from judge Nicky Slater: ‘I find myself smiling when I watch the pair of you skate,’ he said, but commented that the Doc’s lack of speed and confidence on the ice did lower his mark. ‘Surprisingly endearing’ and ‘sweet’ was Emma Bunton’s verdict, also commenting that, ‘as you get older you lose your nerve so I think you’re very, very brave.’
Music: Everlasting Love by Robert Knight
Costume: Black trousers, black and gold striped sparkly shirt Total score: 11.5
Week 3
The week of Dr Hilary’s big wobble! He’d had quite a big fall in rehearsals but, thankfully, just about stayed on his feet during the live show. The stumble did, however, reflect heavily in his marks and he was bottom of the leader board with the lowest score ever! Perhaps he’d been true to his word in a pre-show interview where he’d claimed he would get tips from last year’s skating fiasco actor Todd Carty. ‘Compared to me, he’s brilliant,’ Dr Hilary had quipped.
Music: Close to You by The Carpenters
Costume: Black trousers, black shirt with a hint of pink sparkle Total score: 7.5
Week 4: ’70s week
In preparation for this week’s performance, Dr Hilary hit a karaoke bar and went back to the ’70s by belting out his song for the show, the Neil Diamond classic, Sweet Caroline. Prior to starting Dancing On Ice, Dr Hilary admitted that, when it came to dancing, he ‘waits till it’s very dark and has some medicinal bevvies first’. We suspect a few medicinal bevvies might have been taken before his karaoke performance, too. But strictly medicinal, of course! On performance night, he received wildly opposing comments from judges Nicky and Jason. Nicky claiming, ‘You actually have some kind of a charisma coming out from the ice,’ while Jason, as usual, didn’t mince his words: ‘It’s not very good. Everyone else is leaps and bounds ahead.’ Dr Hilary wasn’t phased by Jason’s comments, but revelled in what Nicky had said. ‘I love that word, charisma. I’ll have a bit of that, yeah!’ he beamed!
Music: Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond
Costume: Black trousers, smoky blue satin shirt Total score: 11.5
Week 5
Dr Hilary’s performance showed real signs of improvement this week and the judges all agreed he looked ‘more confident and comfortable’ on the ice. There was barely a wobble in sight!
Music: Truly Madly Deeply by Savage
Garden Costume: Black trousers, deep, midnight-blue satin shirt Total score: 11.5
Week 6: Valentine’s Day special
Prior to his performance, Dr Hilary made a new friend in the form of hip-hop mentor Super Malcolm, whose main job was to teach our doc to clap in time. ‘Seeing Malcolm was brilliant,’ said Dr Hilary. ‘When I met him for the first time, he just looked at me and said, “Show me what you can do” and I couldn’t show him anything!’ But Malcolm was very complimentary about Dr Hilary’s skills:
‘He does have rhythm, he just doesn’t know it!’ After Dr Hilary’s performance he even got a heckler from the audience – ‘You’re the man!’ shouted Super Malcolm, to which Dr Hilary retorted, ‘You’re the man!’ Nicky saw ‘elements of Todd Carty – in the nicest possible way’ and Emma said ‘I don’t think the competition can really start while you’re still here’ – to a chorus of boos from the audience.
And so it was that, despite achieving his highest total score of the show, Dr Hilary found himself in the skate-off against ex-Coronation Street actor Danny Young. Following the skate-off, Dr Hilary said, ‘That felt lovely but to be honest I think my time has come.’ The vote was unanimous to save Danny even though guest judge, Michael Ball said Dr Hilary had done ‘the best he’s ever done’ and Nicky remarked, ‘That was much closer than I expected and a really commendable effort.’ After the results, Dr Hilary summed up his time on the show. ‘It’s been terrific fun. I’ve loved being part of it all. I’ll certainly keep skating.’
Music: Higher Love by Stevie Winwood
Costume: Black trousers, white satin shirt dotted with silver sequins Total score: 12
Photograph: ITV
