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HOLLY GO-BRIGHTLY
TV presenter Holly Willoughby steps off the ice to talk about the furore surrounding her revealing outfits, and explains why shes proud to be a Stepford Wife.
TVs Dancing On Ice pulled in millions of viewers - and became the most watched show of the year - because it ticked all the right boxes when it comes to essential entertainment viewing, namely tears, tantrums, spangled tights and competitiveness of epic proportions.
But like its closest rival, BBC Ones Strictly Come Dancing, the shows popularity wasnt only due to the liberal use of sequins and spandex, but also the successful partnership of its hosts.
It seems pairing a grey haired stalwart of the showbiz industry with a beautiful, blonde female co-host will always prove a winning combination.
Like Strictlys Tess Daly, Ice presenter Holly Willoughby, 27, cut her TV teeth on childrens live television.
As Holly says when I meet her: Kids TV is a good place to hone your craft and learn a lot about live telly.
If you can handle two-and-a-half hours of live TV with kids who are going to do exactly what they want to do and without any explanation, then there are not many situations you cant handle. I think thats why the majority of really good presenters started out in childrens TV, like Philip [Schofield, her co-host on Dancing On Ice].
Did Holly fall for Schofields charms? (He was once voted the winner in a poll entitled, Men I Secretly Adore.) Chuckling, she says: Schofields like a silver fox. Hes very handsome and very dapper and very charming. I can see what women mean, before hastily adding, I mean hes not my type but Ive learnt a lot from him.
Perhaps shes afraid of offending her husband of only seven months, Dan Baldwin. The two met on the set of Saturday morning kids show, Ministry Of Mayhem when he was a producer and she was one of the unfailingly enthusiastic hosts who could grin and bear her way through gunge and food fights galore.
Holly seems to have made the difficult transition from children to primetime television with ease, where others have failed.
I was very lucky really. I was doing my last shows of Saturday Morning [formerly Ministry of Mayhem] when the first series of Dancing On Ice went on air. I dont even know how it happened. It must be a case of right time, right place, as one evening, one of the bigwigs from ITV came over and said Congratulations.
I just thought, I dont know what youre talking about but Ill just say thank you anyway. But then he carried on and it got to the point where I had to go, I actually have no idea what youre talking about. It was really as weird as that, I must have lucked out.
The programme has bought her to the attention of millions, undoubtedly thanks in part to the glamorous outfits she has worn on the show. One particular plunging ensemble even hit the headlines for the complaints it drew and became a running skit on Harry Hills TV Burp.
When I choose clothes for the show, its checked by my stylist and all the execs, so a lot of people thought the dress was perfectly fine. I still cant see whats wrong with it. A very few people out of nine million viewers complained and it blew up out of nowhere.
She adds resolutely: At no point have the TV execs asked me to tone down anything. It weirds me out because I wasnt making any kind of statement. You could have literally dropped me from the roof in that dress and nothing would have moved out of place.
A former child model who graduated to a lingerie campaign for Pretty Polly, Holly should really be congratulated, not criticised for celebrating her curvy size 12 figure.
And shes even been heard expounding the virtues of Bridget Jones style pants, which is refreshingly down to earth. I dont think Ive got anything to hide and I dont think its a bad thing to say those things. I find the size 0 debate completely dull and boring, she says.
My only advice to other women would be go and do something far more interesting than worry about the size of your bottom.
She has a similar grounded attitude when it comes to her new-found celebrity status. If youre in the public eye then its part of the deal that youll get papped out and about. Thats the bad bit, but the good bit is amazing.
You get to do a job thats fantastic and you live a lovely life. If the only thing you have to worry about is that someone might take a picture, then just smile. Make it a nice one.
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