Torvill & Dean... our last dance

Legends of the ice, Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean, have announced that they will be retiring from skating together in spring 2025, when they embark on their last ever UK tour: ‘Torvill & Dean: Our Last Dance’.

50 years since they formed their incredible skating partnership, Our Last Dance kicks off at London’s OVO Arena in Wembley on 11 April 2025. This will be the final chance to see Torvill & Dean in action on the ice together, before they hang up their skates for good. The 34-date tour will see the world’s most famous skaters perform at major entertainment venues across the UK for the very last time. Tickets are available now from

TorvillandDean.com.

The farewell tour will see Torvill & Dean tell the story of their amazing 50-year partnership. They will be joined on the ice by 15 professional skaters to take the audience on a journey through their incredible career from the very beginning to the present day, with a nostalgic look at the 70s and 80s. This retrospective storytelling will include some of Torvill & Dean’s most iconic numbers, recreated with the help of some incredibly talented ice skaters, along with the use of giant screens to showcase some unique videos from the archive. Plus, of course, Torvill & Dean performing some newly choreographed routines.

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean said: “Our farewell tour next year will be an opportunity to celebrate one final time and say thank you to all our incredible fans across the UK, who have supported us constantly over many years. We started skating together when we were 15 years old, so we have many years of wonderful stories and memories to relive on the tour. It’s been 50 years since our skating partnership began, so now is the right time to say goodbye and end on a high. Whilst we will continue to work together off the ice, this will be the last time we will skate together.

We promise to put on an amazing live show – and really hope to see you there.”

Torvill & Dean announced their skating retirement on 14th February this year (“Bolero Day”, as they fondly call it) whilst in Sarajevo to commemorate their historic Gold medal winning performance to Ravel’s Bolero at the 1984 Winter Olympics –exactly 40 years to the day.

Invited by the Mayor of Sarajevo, they visited the city to mark the 40th anniversary and relived their memories four decades on from the iconic heartstopping performance which had a UK television audience of 24 million people on the edge of their seats. It became one of the greatest sporting moments of the 20th Century and set a new standard for world-class figure skating.

Torvill & Dean are back on ITV1 every Sunday night, as Head Judges on the 17th series of Dancing on Ice.

Website: www.torvillanddean.com

Instagram: @TorvillandDeanOfficial

Facebook: @TorvillandDean

X: @TorvillandDeanOfficial

Thanks for taking the time, it’s been almost 10 years since I’ve been with GNI and don’t recall directly questioning you, promise I’ll take it easy lol. I gave a wee intro above, I’m keen to hear how you introduce yourself as when meeting someone for the first time?

Hi Daniel, thanks for having me for a wee chat about myself and what I do on a day to day basis. I normally introduce myself as Anthony or Anto for short. When people ask what I do for a living i normally lead with personal trainer/massage therapist as that’s what I do most of the week. If I get the chance to do a bit of art here and there I always try and make time for it if I can. (which isn’t much these days, this adulting craic is hard work lol.) But I always try to be as friendly as I can be and always try to see the good in people. “Be kind” comes to mind as I believe first impressions to be hugely important in all aspects of life.

For those new to the magazine and not familiar with you, give us a brief recap, where you hail from, what brought you to Belfast and do you see yourself in the city for the foreseeable future ?

So I’m originally from the maiden city as they call it, Derry/Londonderry or stroke city as some also like to call it. I moved to Belfast nearly 13 years ago now in the hopes of landing a job and starting afresh in the big smoke. (That’s what we call it where I’m from.) But yeah the plan was to take what little cash I had to my name, get myself somewhere to stay, hopefully land any job and have enough to survive on. By a stroke of sheer luck, I managed to secure a job within a couple of weeks and haven’t stopped working really since. So it worked out really well in the end, I’m a big believer in fate and this must have been what fate had in store for this wee Derry man. The future? Hopefully somewhere nice and warm but I’m a bit of a home bird so a mix of both would be nice.

Lets chat about relationships, you’ve been with Brian 13 years and you tied the knot last year, congratulations, has anything changed in your relationship since you said ‘I DO’ ?

Ah thats lovely, thank you! I met my partner and best friend Brian not too long after moving to Belfast all those years ago. I think it the end he was the biggest reason for me staying here otherwise I may have moved back home at some point I reckon. We will have been together for 13 years in August this year (we met on 2012 pride day) and my has the time flown. And yes we got hitched in August 2023 and had a lovely ceremony with close family and friends. When they say it’s the best day of your life they really aren’t kidding, it was everything we could have wished for on the day! And no nothing has changed really with the dynamic in our relationship. If anything has it would be that we take a bit more time in our day to be considerate but then again we always have been and I think thats why we have stayed together as long as we have. Here’s to the next 13!

I know you have fur babies, is this the extent of your family or do you think you may explore fostering, adopting etc down the line ?

Yes we do have our wee dog Charlie and our wee cat Spongebob who thankfully get on quite well. I think for now we are happy with our family dynamic but haven’t ruled out the possibility of a wee baba down the line. If i’m being honest, I think we enjoy getting away on a cheeky last minute holiday too much and know that with a child there is a lot more planning and consideration involved. But never say never, I do like the idea of a wee mini me running around so who knows down the line? We are forever growing and evolving as we get older and a child of our own could be on the cards so never say never.

I need to talk about the GNI Awards, i’ve said it before but the video you made to gather support was just incredible, I let so many people watch it, gutted you didn’t walk away with the trophy though did you have a good night and how important are events like the GNI Awards for the community?

Ack yes, the making of that wee video was some craic haha. I did it in the space of a few hours one day. Anyone that knows me personally knows that I like to get a bit creative with these things and like to think outside the box. Though that scene where i slid down the stairs on my front, the carpet burns weren’t so fun at the time after a few takes haha. But mere, the awards were a lovely evening. I may have not won on the night but that’s just how these things go ya know? I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and the buzz in the room and just being recognised by peers in the community made this wee Derry man feel all warm and fuzzy. Plus I do love me grub and ended up having nearly two dinners that nite but shhh.. keep that between us. But yes these events within the community are vital for those that feel they aren’t seen or heard and when you get that recognition it makes you feel like you are definitely contributing to the diversity of what the LGBTQI+ community brings.

Promise I don’t stalk you though I saw that you spent Christmas in Gran Canaria, do you usually go away over xmas ? Did you enjoy it and would you recommend it ?

Yes we did manage to get away over Xmas and we had such a lovely time in good ol’ GC. We normally do a winter break in the new year to beat those January blues but decided this year to head away over the festive period to see what it’s like. We always wanted to do Christmas Day on the beach and it was definitely good craic! I would definitely recommend a trip there to anyone who hasn’t been as its year round sun and fun. Although if being honest, being there over the festive period this time we did miss home and family over those few days. Getting away to the heat was brill but you just can’t beat a cosy fire and wrapping up warm on Xmas day and seeing your loved ones with a wee Bailey’s in hand. That’s Christmas to me!

Later this year you will be celebrating a big milestone and joining me in the 40’s club, have you any big plans afoot ?

Ah I know, the big 4-0 is most definitely looming. It’s mad how quickly it has come round, I definitely still feel like that guy in his 20’s on the inside but don’t think I’m doing too bad on the outside. (Well so people tell me on occasion so hopefully they aren’t lying lol.) No plans as of yet how it’s going to go down but one thing is for sure, there will be a party of sorts as I think you have to celebrate these milestones when they come round! A big party with friends and family and I’m happy! Oh and cake! Also, does this mean I am officially entering my, “ daddy “ era now? Heh heh. But in all seriousness, turning 40 isn’t a big deal for me, some people aren’t lucky enough to make it this far so i’m going to fully embrace it.

I may be mistaken though in your recent pics you seem a lot leaner than 6 months ago, what are your own fitness goals and as a PT do you think its important to practise what you preach in terms of staying in good shape?

Ah that’s nice to hear. I’m definitely not doing anything different than I was 6 months ago but I tend to fluctuate a few pounds here and there and that’s ok. I don’t beat myself up about it, I think as I’ve got older I’m more content in my own skin and hey if I’m a wee bit fluffier at times I’m ok with that. But yeah again with the big 4-0 looming I have set some goals for this year and one of them is to definitely ramp it up a few notches in the gym and I intend to strive for that! I’m feeling motivated so watch this space! As a PT, I do think it’s definitely a good thing how you present yourself physically to new and existing clients as it shows you too are capable of putting in the work and know what it takes to maintain a certain level of personal fitness.

You recently moved to Olympus Gym, was it a hard move after being with Dedicated for so long and how are you enjoying the new base?

Yes so I have just moved to Olympus Gym here in north Belfast. It wasn’t an easy decision by any means, I had been with Dedicated fitness for nearly 9 years so taking that leap wasn’t taken lightly. I think I had reached a point in my career where I had found my motivation dipping somewhat and a change of scenery was definitely what has been needed for me. I will no doubt miss my DF family, but sometimes you just know when it’s your time to move on and that time was now. Things have been going really well in the new gym as a result, my motivation is the best it’s been in years and I can see the change in my clients who are most certainly upping their game too! Did I mention I have a few spaces for new clients? Who doesn’t love a cheeky wee plug?

Finally we are barely into 2025 any other big plans or projects planned that we can look out for?

I think 2025 is definitely an exciting one for me. “ Change ” is my mantra heading into this year with some shakeups already taking place career wise. Personally we have a busy year ahead, with a few weddings coming up and a cheeky wee trip to see Kylie in Manchester in May. I’ve never been but have heard great things, so really looking forward to that. Apart from that the year is my oyster and I intend to seize every moment!

Thanks for taking the time to chat Anthony, should any of our readers want a Sports Massage or get in touch ref Personal Training, how can they reach you ?

If anyone is interested in any of the above don’t hesitate to get in touch. The best way is via socials where you will find me under, “ anto_cools” on instagram for personal training enquiries or “ Resurge_massagetherapy” for massage enquiries. Or alternatively an email is fine also, my email is anthony_cooley@icloud.com

Thanks for your time! And I hope yous all have a wonderful 2025. Anto.