DANCING on Ice fans are heading for the ice rink at Braehead Arena to emulate their skating heroes.
Bosses at the Olympic-sized ice rink have revealed that the number of people coming along to public skating has rocketed by as much as 50 per cent since the popular Sunday night show on ITV began last month.
The Arena – part of the giant Braehead Shopping Centre, near Glasgow – is now putting on additional skating sessions and organising a Family Come and Try session on Saturday (February 12) between 9am and noon with qualified coaches on hand to give hints on how to skate like the stars on Dancing on Ice.
Scots telly star, Carol Smillie, gets her skates on every week for a whiz round the ice rink with her pals.
Carol has been enjoying skating for years and even appeared as a contestant on the BBC’s Strictly Dancing on Ice Christmas special, in 2004.
Carol, 48, said: “I get quite a rush when I’m skating and I love the feeling of speed as I’m scooting round the ice rink.
“I would encourage anyone – no matter what age they are – to give skating a go. It’s great exercise and even more importantly it’s loads of fun, especially when you go skating with your friends.
“You don’t have to be the sporty type to learn to skate and it’s great for kids to get away from the PlayStation for a while and burn off some energy.”
Braehead Arena manager, Scott Martin, said: “We’ve had a 50 per cent increase in the amount of people coming to our public skating sessions and I’ve no doubt it’s all down to the popularity of the Dancing on Ice show on television.
“And there’s been so many people saying they want to learn how to skate like the celebrities on the show, we’re putting instructors on the ice to give some informal coaching to anyone who goes along to our Family Come and Try session on Saturday.”
The extra skating sessions are being held on the school break this month between February 12 and 16. For more information log on to www.braehead.co.uk or call 0141 885 4611.
ENDS
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