By Sarah Bull


'Bland and rigid': Christine Bleakley failed to impress with her debut on Dancing On Ice alongside Phillip Schofield last night


She had been hoping to find her niche after landing a presenting role on Dancing On Ice.

But Christine Bleakley failed to impress with her debut on last night's show, with many viewers coming forward to label the 32-year-old presenter 'bland and rigid'.

Christine presented the series premiere alongside Phillip Schofield, but left scores of DOI fans demanding the return of former host Holly Willoughby, who left the programme to take a role presenting BBC's new talent show The Voice.


One viewer wrote on Twitter: 'After watching Dancing on Ice last night Christine Bleakley has the warmth of a cold tap when it comes to presenting.'

While another wrote: 'Sorry may b alone in this bt Christine Bleakley is 2 stiff & starchy 4 DOI, need someone much more relaxed and natural, eek'

A further viewer added: 'Very happy that #dancingonice is back to its old form!! However, Christine Bleakley is awful and way too rigid! I miss #hollywilloughbooby.'


Muscular: Christine showed off her toned arms in a sleeveless red dress on the show


New line-up: While Christine didn't impress, the new judges, Louie Spence and Katarina Witt, won positive reviews

And another wrote: 'Christine has nothing on Holly, bring her back!'
Some other viewers contested that Christine had done well on her first show.

One tweeted: 'Co-host Christine Bleakley proved she has enough live TV experience for this gentle show.'

And another added: 'Christine Bleakley looks so pretty, I love that dress!'

A further viewer said that it was actually the new judges that had let the show down, writing: 'DOI - christine bleakley was gd but not feeling the new judges at all - esp louis!!! #bringbackjase&emma.'

An ITV spokesperson said: 'We’ve had positive feedback about Christine and Phillip presenting the new series of Dancing On Ice.'

However, Christine had chosen the perfect outfit for her DOI debut, showcasing her amazingly toned arms in a stunning full-length red sleeveless gown.

The mixed reactions to Christine's Dancing On Ice debut is likely to come as a disappointment to the presenter, whose contract with Daybreak ended early last year.

But her former co-host Adrian Chiles, who was also let go from the ITV show, can take cheer from having £1.5million in the bank, after accounts from his company Basic Broadcasting Limited reveal he doubled the amount of cash in the bank in 2011 from £740,574 in 2010 to £1.5million.

Chiles, 47, set up the company in 1996 with his now ex-wife, Radio 4 presenter Jane Garvey, to channel the pair's earnings, and his total assets now stand at £1.9million - up from £1.2million in 2010.


Not found her niche: Christine had been hoping to find more success with Dancing On Ice than she had on Daybreak with Adrian Chiles

Chiles and Bleakley joined Daybreak in September 2010 on reported £6 million-a-year salaries after a successful stint together hosting the BBC's The One Show.

Despite the reaction to Christine's Dancing On Ice debut, the show's new judges Louie Spence and Katarina Witt won positive comments from viewers on social networking sites.

And figures today show that a peak audience of an impressive 9.9million viewers watched the show.


source:dailymail