Saira Khan’s ‘Dancing On Ice’ partner was worried about her age and lack of experience.
The 48-year-old television presenter has been paired with pro skater Mark Hanretty on the BBC show, and he has admitted he has his reservations when he found out she would be his celebrity for the series.
Appearing on Saira’s ‘Loose Women’ panel show on Monday (14.01.19), he said: "As skaters, we’re inherently competitive and we know that this show does favour the young, history tells us that, and those that have got a performance background.
"Saira comes into it, one of the older ladies in the competition, you don’t dance, you don’t sing, you don’t act. I’d heard on the rumour mill that in the masterclass with Torvill and Dean, you were the worst."
Despite not being too optimistic before rehearsals began, Mark – who added he does thing older stars can still be good skaters – admitted he was impressed with Saira’s "work ethic".
Saira and Mark’s routine – set to ‘Express Yourself’ by Madonna – did enough to earn them a score of 19.5 from the judges, which meant they avoided a spot on the skate-off.
And the star was delighted with her time on the ice and admitted she put her own enjoyment over technical precision.
She added: "I had the time of my life. The skating went out of the window, and I thought ‘I’m just going to have fun’ – and it paid off!"
Saira was joined by ‘Loose Women’ co-stars Coleen Nolan, Jane Moore and Andrea McLean for her performance, and she admitted it gave her a big boost.
She said: "It was amazing! I think the best part was seeing the three of you sitting behind me, it just gave me so much energy. What was brilliant was I knew you had no idea what to expect!"
Saira Khan’s age and inexperience worried Dancing On Ice’s Mark Hanretty
