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Ruth Langsford tells Jason Gardiner HE is the reason she turned down Dancing On Ice

Was it because she's scared of the judge's "harsh" comments?

We all know Jason Gardiner can be shocking, but it was Ruth Langsford who surprised us on Friday’s This Morning.

The star – who bombed out of Strictly Come Dancing in ninth place back in 2017 – admitted to the controversial judge that not only did she turn down his show, Dancing On Ice – but HE was the reason why.

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Jason looked surprised by Ruth’s statement (Credit: ITV)

The awkward moment happened as Ruth and her husband, Eamonn Holmes introduced an interview with the scary judge.

Producers played a montage of the 47-year-old’s scarier comments from last weekend’s launch show, and joked that the next batch of contestants better hope Jason is “in a good mood.”

As the VT finished, Ruth leaned over and exclaimed sarcastically: “I’m just trying to think why I turned Dancing On Ice down… Just trying to think why I would’ve done that!”

ruth langsford this morning jason gardiner
Ruth made a face at the idea of Jason being in a good mood (Credit: ITV)

Jason laughed, but then looked a bit shocked, saying: “You turned it down?!”

Ruth looked a bit embarrassed and laughed it off as they quickly moved on with the interview.

It’s an about-turn for the star who told Closer back in 2011 that she would love to do the ITV skating show.

She told the magazine: “I would consider maybe Strictly or Dancing on Ice. There’s definitely the personal challenge element to it all. I love Dancing on Ice, I’m glued! I used to skate on a Saturday morning when I was younger – all the sequins and dramas, it’s great.”

Read more: Louise Redknapp breaks silence on ‘heartbreaking’ injuries, which forced her to pull out of West End show

The rest of the chat was only slightly less tense, as Ruth, 59, and her co-host hubby grilled Jason about his critiques of contestants.

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Ruth went on to quiz him about his “harsh” comments (Credit: ITV)

Ruth called him “harsh” and a “pantomime villain”, while Eamonn, 59, pointed out how Gemma Collins in particular had “bristled” during his feedback.

In fact, TOWIE star Gemma, 37, lashed out at the judge after his negative comments about her, saying: “[Jason] can’t actually skate, so he can’t back up his words with actions.”

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Jason looked annoyed to hear Gemma had been mean about his skating skills (Credit: ITV)

The 59-year-old added: “I think it is going to be horns locked between you and her for as long as she lasts.”

Jason told the hosts: “We have to forgive these people for being ignorant and not knowing their stuff. Because, y’know, I guess [Gemma] doesn’t understand where I come from. She doesn’t know that I actually can skate.”

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Eamonn and Ruth teased him about being a pantomime villain (Credit: ITV)

He added that Gemma could go ask his fellow judges – who include Jayne Torvill, Chris Dean and Ashley Banjo – if she didn’t believe it.

Read more: Zoe Ball says work ‘saved’ her after a tragic couple of years

We’re not sure if Ruth was joking, but let’s hope so. We’d love to see her trying her moves on the ice!

Do you think Ruth should’ve done Dancing On Ice? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think.


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor

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