As a survivor of Retinoblastoma – a rare childhood eye cancer, Kitty was granted a wish by Rays of Sunshine.
For her wish, Kitty wanted to see Dancing on Ice and meet the skaters. Kitty became obsessed with the show in the previous year. The lovely people at Rays of Sunshine arranged a visit to the set for Kitty. However, due to her age, she couldn’t attend the live show, so ITV and Rays worked it out so that we could attend the dress rehearsal for that day’s show instead. Kitty was picked up in a White Rolls Royce and chauffeur driven to the filming location at RAF Bovingdon in Hertfordshire. From there, we were taken backstage.
Kitty met all of the professional skaters competing that season. She had a lovely long chat with Matt Evers and Dr Tom. The ladies all seemed to gravitate towards Kitty, and everyone really made Kitty feel comfortable and included. The only competing celebrity to come out to meet Kitty was Joe Swash, who was so personable, lovely, and down to earth. Joe and the professional skaters all went above and beyond to make Kitty’s experience one she will remember forever.
After the meet and Greet, we sat to watch the rehearsal. The first person to come over to speak to us was Joe Pasquali, who was rehearsing his competition segment for the show. We then got an opportunity to go over and have photos taken at the judge’s table. Along the way, we met Dan Whiston, a three times DOI winner in 2006, 2010, and 2013. Dan is now an Associate Creative Director with the show.
Watching the skating was amazing, and during one of the rehearsal breaks, some of the judges and the hosts came over to chat with us. Jane Torville and Chris Dean were amazing, John Barrowman gave Kitty the biggest hug, and Holly was amazed that Kitty recognised the outfit she was wearing at the time as one she had worn in the jungle when she hosted ‘Im a Celebrity during Ant McPartlin’s absence.
At the end of the rehearsal, Kitty got to have more photos taken with Vanessa, the only skater not to visit us backstage. Everyone autographed DOI cue cards for Kitty to take home with her, and we then returned to the Rolls Royce for the drive home.
We thank Rays of Sunshine and ITV for organising Kitty’s wish and making it special.
If you would like to know more about Rays of Sunshine and the work they do, please visit their website at: https://raysofsunshine.org.uk
To learn more about Kitty’s cancer – Retinoblastoma, please visit The Childhood Eye Cancer Trust website at: https://chect.org.uk