Denise van Outen has been confirmed for ‘Dancing on Ice’.
The ‘Neighbours’ actress – who previously competed on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ – will take part in the ITV show early next year after being revealed as the latest contestant live on ‘Loose Women’, and she has managed to keep it a secret from her 10-year-old daughter Betsy.
Speaking on the ITV lunchtime show, she said: "I’m really excited. Finally, I get to tell people. I’ve kept this a secret from most of my friends and family. Betsy doesn’t even know. She’s at school, so she’s going to find out this afternoon when I pick her up from school.
"She will be so excited. She loves the show and we watch it every year.
"Literally, I cannot stand up on ice. Every time I’ve taken Betsy around on a rink I’ve been the one on the penguin."
The 46-year-old actress – who starred on ‘The Masked Singer’, as Fox, earlier this year – admitted she "can dance", but she is "worried" about picking up an injury on the ice.
She said: "I can dance, I can move. So that is going to help me a bit. But being on the ice is completely different.
"If I can marry the two I should be alright. But I don’t know.
"As I’ve got older I’m more fearful. I’m not as confident on the ice as I would’ve been when I was younger. I do get quite scared.
"I am worried about injuries, but I’ve been reassured. I’ve been told you get all the best advice and support, so I should be OK.
"I’ll just take my time, learn slowly, and hopefully progress."
‘Loose Women’ panellist Linda Robson accidentally let slip it was Denise before the big reveal on the show, by shouting out "Outen" and then quickly putting her hand to her mouth.
Show anchor Kaye Adams then quickly went to an advert break.
Linda had been given a number of picture clues which related to the star to tease viewers with, including an image of Denise Welch, a photo of a fox, and one of a fried breakfast, in a nod to her previous stint on ‘The Big Breakfast’.
But Linda was unsure what the brekkie and fox clues referred to.
She said: "Where does the fox come into it with Denise van Outen?"
Kaye also joked that ‘Loose Women’ panellist Janet Street-Porter could be on this year’s series, but the journalist insisted she would never take part because she wouldn’t want to "break [her] teeth".