Series 17 of Dancing On Ice came to an end on Sunday night, with Sam Aston and pro partner Molly Lanaghan crowned champions.
The shock upset saw the Coronation Street star narrowly beat favourites Michaela Strachan and Mark Hanretty in what could be the the ITV show’s last ever final.
Amid reports the programme is facing the axe and could be rested for a few years, MailOnline attended the action-packed show at Bovingdon Airfield and can reveal exactly what happened when the cameras weren’t rolling.
There was plenty of atmosphere in the studio before the show kicked off, with the audience kept entertained while they waited for the live programme to begin.
Stars of the show came out onto the rink to rapturous applause as they practised their routines ahead of the live show.
The presenters also came out and practised their link, with Holly Willoughby walking on gracefully, while Stephen Mulhern arrived in a giant skating boot and was pulled by four professionals.
What you DIDN’T see at the Dancing On Ice final: From the team’s emotional moment on the ice as they bid farewell to Mark Hanretty (pictured) to Stephen Mulhern’s cheeky joke
There was plenty of atmosphere in the studio before the show kicked off, with the audience kept entertained while they waited for the live programme to begin (pictured: hosts Stephen Mulhern and Holly Willoughby)
They shared a laugh when the cameras stopped rolling, with Stephen saying ‘no seriously how do I get out?’ before the pros spun him several times with the crowd cheering for more to make him dizzy.
Among those cheering from the audience was Rio Ferdinand, who arrived just before the live show started and sat among the finalists families.
He looked crushed when his brother Anton finished in third place, meaning he wouldn’t get to skate the Bolero.
Yet Anton was quick to offer reassurance, mouthing to Rio off camera: ‘It’s alright’.
It was an emotional night for all as the team celebrated Torvill and Dean’s last ever skate on TV.
The pair have confirmed that they will return for future Dancing On Ice series but will not perform.
The audience were left visibly shocked at the last few moments of the show, when Corrie star Sam beat Michaela to be crowned winner.
Yet on the ice, attention was on Michaela’s partner Mark, who announced last year that he was quitting the show after 12 years.
Stephen arrived in a giant skating boot and was pulled by four professionals. They shared a laugh when the cameras stopped rolling, with Stephen saying ‘no seriously how do I get out?’
Rio Ferdinand looked crushed when his brother Anton finished in third place. Yet Anton was quick to offer reassurance, mouthing to Rio off camera: ‘It’s alright’ (Anton pictured with Annette Dytrt)
Series 17 of Dancing On Ice came to an end with Sam Aston and pro partner Molly Lanaghan crowned champions in a shock result
After the show was signed off, the cast appeared emotional saying goodbye to one another, with the pros all hugging Mark.
Proving there was no hard feelings, Michaela and Sam also shared a sweet embrace as she congratulated him on the big win.
The cast ended the night with a huge afterparty, with alcohol, a Gregg’s food trunk and plenty of photo opportunities.
It will likely be the last time all of the cast are together so they wanted to end the series in style and celebrate Sam and Molly.
Despite all the news reports, the cast and crew made no mention of the series not returning.
The show’s future has been thrown into doubt with a source telling The Mirror there are concerns behind the scenes that falling viewership could spell the end for the skating series after 20 years on air.
Dancing On Ice has lost over a million viewers in the last two years, with its 2023 launch drawing in 4.1million yet no episode this series has made it above 3 Million.
A source said: ‘There are very real fears this is the end of the road for Dancing on Ice.’
The cast ended the night with a huge afterparty, with alcohol, a Gregg’s food trunk and plenty of photo opportunities (pictured: runners up Michaela Strachan and Mark Hanretty)
They continued: ‘It’s had a good run for nearly 20 years and has a very loyal set of viewers who really love it but the sad truth is there’s just not enough of them.
‘We need bums on seats but the ratings have dropped to a point where it’s difficult to justify the cost.
An ITV spokeswoman told the publication: ‘The Dancing on Ice team is fully concentrating on the much anticipated series finale this coming Sunday and therefore no decision has been made.’
Dancing On Ice first aired in 2006 and initially ended in 2014. The series was revived in 2018.
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