Dancing on Ice - Tim Vincent
11 January 2008 - Introducing celebrity skater Tim Vincent
Age: 35
Occupation: TV Presenter and actor
Partner: Victoria Borzenkova
Celebrity Supporters: Konnie Huq, Gareth Hale, Diane Louise Jordan
TV presenter and actor Tim Vincent has a particularly unique worry about his Dancing On Ice training – that of protecting certain parts of his anatomy during a certain move.
"There's a manoeuvre that I have to do where I have to pull Victoria my partner through my legs. I have to keep remembering to stand as tall as possible as I pull her through otherwise she hits me right you know where. This isn't very nice on the ice and can really hurt. It's certainly a sharp reminder for the next time to stand up tall."
With a successful career in Los Angeles, currently presenting a regular slot on NBC's Access Hollywood as well as a brand new show called Phenomenon, Tim has to fit in training in between transatlantic flights, as he lives in New York.
"At one point I did 75 hours flying time in 7 weeks. LA to New York to London every single week and so my training has been minimal. Minimal and miserable because I was getting up at 6am to try and do an hour and a half on the ice which was basically just skating around and getting used to being on the ice and not really learning anything. Now I'm back on track with three hours of training a day. Chris and Jayne are so nice and the coaches are so encouraging. You do baby steps and then they point out a week ago you wouldn't have been able to do what you're doing now which is true. You've got to ignore how good the other people are and just concentrate on your own situation."
With his confidence on the ice slowly building week by week, Tim has time to focus his fears elsewhere.
"I know that Dancing On Ice can become a celebration of campness with all the costumes which I'm not so keen on. Apparently all the blokes say that absolutely every year, and they start off with a couple of sequins and at the end of the series they end up looking like Dame Edna Everage. I'm waiting with interest to see if that happens but I've seen my first costume and it's very conservative in the world of ice skating, which to be honest I'm happy about."
He is a bit more interested in the ladies ice fashion though.
"I haven't seen any of the girls in their Lycra yet unfortunately. It's just mainly training every day and you're with your partner and you're in tracksuits – it's very unglamorous."
One thing Tim is looking forward to will be spending a bit more time in the UK as he maintains that British girls are still the best.
"I think the biggest difference between British and American women is that British women have a great sense of humour. There is a phrase I use in America – 'British humour, American silence', which means out there you'll crack a really dry joke and there'll be a blank vacant look back at you."
And more than anything, Tim cannot wait for the day that skating partner Victoria yells out the words 'Yes! Yes! Yes!'
"My skating partner is Russian and the one word that I've learned from her so far is 'niet'. Niet means no and as we keep skating round she keeps going 'Niet! Niet! Niet!.' So I'm waiting for the day that I learn the Russian for Yes! Yes! Yes!"
