Who is John Barrowman? Meet the new Dancing on Ice judge and Torchwood actor
You probably saw the fabulous performer on I'm a Celebrity last year
After the exit of iconic judge Jason Gardiner, Dancing on Ice had some rather big shoes to fill for the new series. Luckily John Barrowman is no stranger to dancing shoes, including heels, as he joins current judges Jayne Torvill, Christopher Dean and Ashley Banjo.
Here's everything you need to know about the all-singing, all-dancing John Barrowman, who will make his debut on Dancing on Ice at Christmas before appearing on the main series.
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Dancing On Ice 2020 cast line-up: John Barrowman – Key Facts
Age: 52
Known for: Acting, Singing, Presenting, TV Personality
Twitter: @JohnBarrowman
Instagram: @johnscotbarrowman
Who is John Barrowman?
John Barrowman MBE was born in Glasgow in 1967, but moved to the US aged eight where he began a successful theatre career.
After appearing in musicals such as Miss Saigon, The Phantom of the Opera, Sunset Boulevard in both Broadway and the West End, Barrowman began acting for the screen in films such as De-Lovely and The Producers.
However, it is the role of dashing Captain Jack Harkness that Barrowman is most famous for, a character who debuted on Doctor Who in 2005 before leading adult spin-off Torchwood for four series. Barrowman has been very vocal in campaigning for a new series of the sci-fi show over the years, including pitching his own movie. He also had a stint on Desperate Housewives in 2010, and will be recognisable to superhero fans as supervillain Malcolm Merlyn in connected DC shows Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow.
Barrowman has been a judge before, presiding over musical theatre hopefuls in Andrew Lloyd Webber's talent shows How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria?, Any Dream Will Do and I'd Do Anything. He presented and produced Saturday night entertainment programme Tonight's the Night, and briefly hosted BBC quiz show Pressure Pad.
As well as appearing on several musical theatre soundtracks, Barrowman has released albums including Another Side, Music Music Music as well as new festive album A Fabulous Christmas.
Barrowman has had memorable stints on reality TV - in 2018 he took part in I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, in which he came third place and spawned new catchphrase "Fab-u-lous!". Interestingly Barrowman previously appeared on Dancing on Ice as a contestant on the very first series all the way back in 2006, and was eliminated in the fourth week. We're sure he'll last until the end this time.
What has John Barrowman said about Dancing On Ice?
John Barrowman has uploaded several suitably fabulous posts onto his social media to show just how happy he is at the news.
“I am so excited to be returning to the Dancing On Ice family,” Barrowman said. "Unlike most I have been through the rigorous task of skating live as a contestant in the first series. This is a thrilling adventure for me and I hope to bring a Fresh, Fun and fabulous angle to the judging panel.”
Dancing on Ice on Christmas is on ITV on Sunday 22nd December at 7pm
