Joe-Warren Plant and Vanessa Bauer have been left devastated after being told they cannot return to 'Dancing On Ice'.
Joe-Warren Plant
The 'Emmerdale' actor and his professional dance partner were forced to leave the ITV celebrity figure skating competition after testing positive for COVID-19 and there is no chance of them returning.
A source told The Sun newspaper's Bizarre TV column: “Everyone was expecting them to return. When the idea was first mooted everyone thought producers were just being polite. But clearly they always wanted this to happen.
“Joe and Vanessa are absolutely gutted. They had no ill-effects of being positive for COVID-19, so have been keeping fit and healthy in the confines of their hotel walls while they were isolating. But ultimately the producers have to uphold the integrity of the show and felt inviting them back could really upset the apple cart.”
Meanwhile, show bosses have been forced to cut the series short due to injuries and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Producers working on programme have brought the final forward to March 14 - rather than March 21 - due to a lack of contestants after injuries and COVID-19 diagnoses.
An insider told The Sun Online: "Everybody is absolutely gutted that it’s come to this. But ultimately, due to injuries and shooting the show during a pandemic, they’ve been left with no choice.
"They can’t compromise on the quality of the programme, so in order to keep it to the high standards that everyone expects, they’ve decided to trim the series by a show.
“It means they’ll get to give all the skaters and celebrities a proper semi-final and a grand finale they all deserve.”