Dancing On Ice’s Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean ‘will be given damehood and knighthood in the King’s New Year Honours’ after five decades of skating

by

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are expected to receive dame and knight titles in the upcoming New Year Honours list from the King.

Jayne and Christopher, now 68 and 67 years old respectively, received MBEs in 1981 and OBEs in 2000. Despite years of campaigning and a recent petition in 2023, they have not yet been awarded knighthood and damehood.

They first achieved Olympic gold in figure skating at the 1984 Winter Games, and later became household names as stars of the ITV show, Dancing on Ice.

After an incredible 50-year career, the Olympic champions who set numerous records are retiring and will be honored with a damehood and knighthood, the Sun reports.

The performers were already well-known and popular before gaining even more fans as judges on Dancing On Ice.

Despite their successful careers, people have always wondered about the true nature of their connection.

Both British skaters are happily settled in long-term relationships. Jayne has been married to Phil Christiansen since 1990, and Christopher previously married twice before becoming a partner to his Dancing On Ice colleague, Karen Barber, in 2011.

However, many fans have suspected a deeper connection between them, especially after they kissed during a 2024 trip to Sarajevo. This trip marked the 40th anniversary of their gold medal win at the 1984 games held in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The couple seemed to be swept away by the romance of Valentine’s Day, sharing a kiss during their passionate Bolero performance – the same routine that won them awards forty years ago.

Both of them have previously confessed to sharing a single kiss when they were younger, and even thought about becoming a couple. However, they ultimately chose to focus on their careers instead.

In April, Torvill and Dean finished their farewell UK tour, “Torvill And Dean: Our Last Dance,” with a final performance in their hometown of Nottingham.

The dance routines feature subtle touches and meaningful glances, so it’s no surprise many fans believe there’s a romantic connection between the performers.

The skaters also seem very comfortable with each other, frequently getting close and posing for cuddly photos.

Christopher and Jayne shared one brief, youthful moment of physical intimacy, but they’ve stated it didn’t go further than that and they’ve never had sexual relations.

In a 2024 interview with the High Performance podcast, Christopher mentioned that he and someone else briefly crossed a boundary when they were younger, but it didn’t continue for long.

We eventually became very close friends, and that strong bond has lasted for fifty years, bringing us to where we are today.

People often ask Jayne and Christopher what makes their friendship work, especially since they never got married. Christopher jokingly added that the key is to avoid dating each other.

Christopher has shared before that their relationship is different from both a sibling bond and a marital one – it’s truly one-of-a-kind.

Jayne told the Mirror that despite both being in other relationships, they still have a strong connection and genuinely enjoy spending time together.

Read More

2025-12-28 03:50