JOEY Essex has revealed he was unable to tie his shoelaces after sustaining a nasty injury during rehearsals for Dancing on Ice.
The 32-year-old former Towie star rolled backwards and almost cut his finger with his own skate just days after training.
Joey, who is paired with Vanessa Bauer, 26, was shaken and forced to wear a metal toe cap to protect his finger.
The TV favorite said he struggled to do simple tasks for a month after the horrifying crash.
“At first, it was to tie my shoelaces… My fingers hurt, I couldn’t tie my shoelaces. So I had to retie my shoelaces for about a month,” he said.
Joey said he was now left with a “big scar” on his finger which was “quite uncomfortable”.
He explained: “As I was skating the first day around the rink, everyone had their hands on their face, like, he’s going to hurt himself because I was falling a lot.
“They said, ‘You have to slow down. We know you’re having fun, but relax. I was funny and I was like, ‘Yeah, I will. I don’t want to lose my finger!’
“In ten seconds I fell backwards and my hand went under my skate and there was blood everywhere.
“They thought I was joking because of what we had just said. “Expect drama, expect risk”
“All I remember is one producer yelling, ‘No, he’s serious! His finger!’
“I could see the bone, four doctors came with a stretcher.”
Luckily for Joey, Vanessa was a rock for him during his return battle on the ice.
After being paired with the German skating champion, the duo are now dating.
And Joey, 32, admits he struggles to keep his hands to himself – hardly surprising given the pair have spent every day training ahead of tomorrow’s show launch evening on ITV1.
“I’m really lucky to be paired with Vanessa, I was very happy,” Joey said with a smile during an exclusive pre-show chat.
He added: “You guys are close and touching each other’s legs. . . and everywhere else. You are very intimate and it can happen.
“Honestly, I don’t know how people do this show when they’re married – it would be a disaster.
“People were like, ‘If I was married. . . God!’ Luckily I don’t have a ring on my finger, huh? »
Joey will make his Dancing on Ice debut tonight, along with Love Island star Ekin-Su CülcüloğluSu, Coronation Street star Mollie Gallagher and singer Michelle Heaton, among a host of other famous faces.
