Oti Mabuse eyes up major ITV career change after Dancing On Ice was cancelled

Daily Mirror

26-04-2025

Former Strictly Come Dancing star Oti Mabuse has seen her two ITV talent shows, Dancing On Ice and The Masked Dancer, get the axe - but she's hoping to appear regularly on another ITV show
Oti Mabuse has teased she is hoping to slide into a regular role on another ITV show after her winter sport reality contest Dancing On Ice was canned by the network. The 34-year-old professional dancer shot to fame in the UK in 2015 when she joined the cast of the hit BBC show Strictly Come Dancing.
During her time on the talent show, she won twice - first with soap actor Kelvin Fletcher in 2019 then comedian Bill Bailey in 2020. She then quit the show after performing with rugby player Ugo Monye in 2021 - before defecting to ITV to take up a chair as a judge on Dancing On Ice in 2022.
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But last month, ITV axed the long-running ice skating competition after viewing figures bombed - bringing to an end its 19 year on-off run. Oti has suffered further bad luck as her other ITV show, The Masked Dancer, on which she was a judge, was cancelled in 2024 after just two seasons.
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However, the star has now hinted she hopes to land a new role on the network - as a regular panelist on iconic lunchtime talk show Loose Women. Fans of the current affairs discussion show - which includes Denise Welch, Coleen Nolan and Nadia Sawalha as panellists.
Oti made her debut as a guest panellist on the daytime show earlier this month - and viewers may see her appearing on the show more regularly. She has shared her dream of returning to the show in an interview with the Express.
The dancer told the publication: 'That was amazing, it was really fun. I have to give it up to Ruth, Jayne and Denise because they were so lovely and we had so much fun, and they made me feel so welcome and at ease.
"I was obviously nervous, but it was nice to be padded around by people who know what they're doing." Oti went on to admit it had been less stressful to be a panellist on the series rather than as a guest.
She explained: 'I was less nervous as a panellist than I am as a guest because as a guest there's specific things that you have to say. Whereas a panellist, they just let you talk, and you discuss things and it's like sitting with your friends and having a coffee and just chatting away.'
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Viewers were touched to see Oti open up about difficult topics including her brother's suicide, why she left Strictly, and her struggles with her body confidence. She revealed: "I think being on Loose [Women], which is what is so amazing about it, is that everybody's got their independent life experiences.
"And I shared mine and I'm very open about it and I think since th jungle that has helped me to just be me and not be afraid of just being honest and being genuine and being authentic. Those things did happen and I don't shy away from it.
"They don't make me less than a person, if anything, I think I'm at a point in my life right now where I can address them and I know how to articulate and be sensitive because other people are going through the same thing, but it's also to raise awareness."
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Last month ITV confirmed that Dancing On Ice would not be returning to screens following the 17th season, which concluded at the beginning of March. The show had been on the air since 2006 - although was taken off the air from 2015 until its revival in 2018.
An ITV spokesperson said: "Following another successful series earlier this year, Dancing On Ice will be rested in 2026 with no current plans for another series.
"We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the cast and crew who have worked on the show since 2006, and over the previous 17 series, for all of their hard work both on and off the ice."