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Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

The Age

9 hours ago

The Age

Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Fitz: What is it? Torvill: Bolero is obviously a very special routine because it opened the door for the future, and we wouldn't still be doing what we're doing without that. Fitz: So let's go back to the romance one! The personal chemistry and physical intimacy that you two display on ice as you dance is so wonderful; it dinkum is amazing that you can do it without ever having been a couple. Was there never a time, Chris, when you said to Jayne, surely, 'Let's go and see a film Saturday night?' And she said, 'No, forget it.' Dean: No, never like that. We have spent a lot of time together, seeing movies, going for drinks, and the theatre, all of those things. And of course, we've been together on many long tours, like when we were touring Australia for the first time. We were meant to be coming for just two weeks, but ended up staying for three months doing shows, and then stayed a further nine months putting a show together. So we were in Sydney area for almost a year, and we made lots of friends. Fitz: [ Painfully persisting ] So never in that year, two young English athletes a long way from home, did you exchange smouldering looks over your Vegemite on toast ... Torvill: No, our main focus was getting the work done. You know, we had just turned professional, and for us, it was an exciting time in that we weren't competing anymore and we didn't have any rules and regulations of competition. So, in fact, you know, we were free to be more creative, which is something that we've always enjoyed. Fitz: What about blues then? There must have come a time over the last 45 years when you two were dancing, when Chris lifted you up, Jayne, so you could do a twirly gig and the booger didn't catch you properly? Surely, there must have been times where, to use the Australian expression, you came an absolute cropper, occasioning strong words? Torvill: No. Lucky for us, we never did have any major falls in competition, which is what counts. Falls in training, you accept. But we trained so hard that to be ready for anything, that we didn't really make any mistakes. So, no 'blues'. Fitz: Moving on! By some reckoning, the pop group ABBA was said to be a bigger success in Australia, even than in Sweden. There was something about ABBA that Australia, more than pretty much any other country, loved. Is it possible that the same applies to you two, that Australia loves Torvill and Dean more than even Britain loves Torvill and Dean, and that we loved you more than anywhere else on Earth. Dean: Maybe. When we first came to Australia, it was such a surprise for us to be so welcomed. The Australian promoter had pre-booked the Russian Olympic figure-skating team, thinking that they would win everything at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics, and they didn't. We did. And so the promoter said, 'We've got to get those bloody Poms down here.' And so within a very short time, somebody came over to see us and gave us a contract, and we came down to Australia and we were adored. I mean, they tell the story of when the tickets first went on sale, that the line instantly formed up right round the Sydney Entertainment Centre. Fitz: Which is very odd, yes? Because in Sydney, we're surfers, netballers, cricketers, footballers, but not really, as a people, ice skaters – with only a rink or two open on a good day? Dean: Yeah, I think what happened, Channel Nine were the host broadcasters at the Olympics, and we became very popular because they gave us a lot of air time. And we became the base of promoting the Winter Olympics in Australia. And, there were also a lot of British expats who took to us, right? Fitz: Whatever else, our love affair with you has been enduring. We also have a saying that a person has had 'more comebacks than Dame Nellie Melba', lately replaced by 'more farewell tours than Johnny Farnham'. Whoever, with you two, came up with the title for your tour, Our Last Dance, has to be commended, because it captures the imagination. But seriously, seriously, when you perform your last dance in Sydney [at Qudos on Sunday afternoon], when you come off the ice, is that really going to be it for you two? Your last dance? Dean: It will certainly be our last performance skating in Australia. But then we go back to Nottingham, our hometown, and we actually do four performances there, and then on the last day, that will be our last skating performance, live skating performance, that we will do. You know, we've been skating together now for 50 years, and we think that that's a good round number to sort of call it a day from the performing side. And the body is ready to say it's time as well. Fitz: But don't you think that five years from now, one of you might say, 'I'm in your town, I'm going to put on a red wig. You put on a blonde one, and I'll see you down at the rink, and just one last time in the moonlight, let's dance?' Torvill: It's not to say that we won't ever skate on the ice together, but we won't actually be performing together. So we may be together like choreographing or teaching somebody. We'll do other things together, but just not performing. This is it. Fitz: Chris? Don't you think that you might just do it one more time in the moonlight, when you're 80, one more time to capture the magic, one more time without anybody knowing, just the two of you? Dean: [ Thoughtfully ] I'm not saying that we won't do that ... but it's not something that we would show off to anybody ... It would be personal. Fitz: Bingo! Now, without being too mealy-mouthed about it, your dancing ability on ice must be comparable, in terms of how much it's celebrated, with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Did you two ever watch footage of their dancing and swoon? T & D: Yes! Dean: They were very much a part of our viewing and we took a lot from them in their style and the movement and their performance quality. Yeah, absolutely, they were our idols. Fitz: You mentioned that you two have been doing it for 50 years. That means – dot three, carry one, subtract two – you must have started in the mid-70s. How much have your physical abilities waned? Are there many things you used to be able to do, that you simply cannot do now? Torvill: There are things that have got harder as we got older, and we're no longer 25, but we still feel that we can put on a show that we're happy with. And we've put it together with some amazing [younger] skaters from around the world. So we're really excited by the show, and the show itself tells a story, our story, right from the beginning, up until now. Loading Fitz: When Mick Jagger was 23 years old, he said, 'I hope I'm not still singing Can't Get No Satisfaction when I'm 30.' Could you two have conceived that you'd still be going 50 years later? And would you have been thrilled? Torvill: No and yes. We would never have imagined it would have been possible. Back then, when skaters turned professional, they would maybe do two years, three years in a professional show, and then, you know, sort of maybe go into teaching or just retire anyway. We've just been so lucky, with the way things happened for us that we were able to create several different tours, and then go back to the Olympics in '94 because that became a possibility, and that extended our professional careers. Dean: And then, in more recent times, television people came and said, would we be interested in teaching celebrities to skate? And that's when Dancing On Ice was born. And that extended us, too.

Sydney Morning Herald

9 hours ago

Sydney Morning Herald

Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Fitz: What is it? Torvill: Bolero is obviously a very special routine because it opened the door for the future, and we wouldn't still be doing what we're doing without that. Fitz: So let's go back to the romance one! The personal chemistry and physical intimacy that you two display on ice as you dance is so wonderful; it dinkum is amazing that you can do it without ever having been a couple. Was there never a time, Chris, when you said to Jayne, surely, 'Let's go and see a film Saturday night?' And she said, 'No, forget it.' Dean: No, never like that. We have spent a lot of time together, seeing movies, going for drinks, and the theatre, all of those things. And of course, we've been together on many long tours, like when we were touring Australia for the first time. We were meant to be coming for just two weeks, but ended up staying for three months doing shows, and then stayed a further nine months putting a show together. So we were in Sydney area for almost a year, and we made lots of friends. Fitz: [ Painfully persisting ] So never in that year, two young English athletes a long way from home, did you exchange smouldering looks over your Vegemite on toast ... Torvill: No, our main focus was getting the work done. You know, we had just turned professional, and for us, it was an exciting time in that we weren't competing anymore and we didn't have any rules and regulations of competition. So, in fact, you know, we were free to be more creative, which is something that we've always enjoyed. Fitz: What about blues then? There must have come a time over the last 45 years when you two were dancing, when Chris lifted you up, Jayne, so you could do a twirly gig and the booger didn't catch you properly? Surely, there must have been times where, to use the Australian expression, you came an absolute cropper, occasioning strong words? Torvill: No. Lucky for us, we never did have any major falls in competition, which is what counts. Falls in training, you accept. But we trained so hard that to be ready for anything, that we didn't really make any mistakes. So, no 'blues'. Fitz: Moving on! By some reckoning, the pop group ABBA was said to be a bigger success in Australia, even than in Sweden. There was something about ABBA that Australia, more than pretty much any other country, loved. Is it possible that the same applies to you two, that Australia loves Torvill and Dean more than even Britain loves Torvill and Dean, and that we loved you more than anywhere else on Earth. Dean: Maybe. When we first came to Australia, it was such a surprise for us to be so welcomed. The Australian promoter had pre-booked the Russian Olympic figure-skating team, thinking that they would win everything at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics, and they didn't. We did. And so the promoter said, 'We've got to get those bloody Poms down here.' And so within a very short time, somebody came over to see us and gave us a contract, and we came down to Australia and we were adored. I mean, they tell the story of when the tickets first went on sale, that the line instantly formed up right round the Sydney Entertainment Centre. Fitz: Which is very odd, yes? Because in Sydney, we're surfers, netballers, cricketers, footballers, but not really, as a people, ice skaters – with only a rink or two open on a good day? Dean: Yeah, I think what happened, Channel Nine were the host broadcasters at the Olympics, and we became very popular because they gave us a lot of air time. And we became the base of promoting the Winter Olympics in Australia. And, there were also a lot of British expats who took to us, right? Fitz: Whatever else, our love affair with you has been enduring. We also have a saying that a person has had 'more comebacks than Dame Nellie Melba', lately replaced by 'more farewell tours than Johnny Farnham'. Whoever, with you two, came up with the title for your tour, Our Last Dance, has to be commended, because it captures the imagination. But seriously, seriously, when you perform your last dance in Sydney [at Qudos on Sunday afternoon], when you come off the ice, is that really going to be it for you two? Your last dance? Dean: It will certainly be our last performance skating in Australia. But then we go back to Nottingham, our hometown, and we actually do four performances there, and then on the last day, that will be our last skating performance, live skating performance, that we will do. You know, we've been skating together now for 50 years, and we think that that's a good round number to sort of call it a day from the performing side. And the body is ready to say it's time as well. Fitz: But don't you think that five years from now, one of you might say, 'I'm in your town, I'm going to put on a red wig. You put on a blonde one, and I'll see you down at the rink, and just one last time in the moonlight, let's dance?' Torvill: It's not to say that we won't ever skate on the ice together, but we won't actually be performing together. So we may be together like choreographing or teaching somebody. We'll do other things together, but just not performing. This is it. Fitz: Chris? Don't you think that you might just do it one more time in the moonlight, when you're 80, one more time to capture the magic, one more time without anybody knowing, just the two of you? Dean: [ Thoughtfully ] I'm not saying that we won't do that ... but it's not something that we would show off to anybody ... It would be personal. Fitz: Bingo! Now, without being too mealy-mouthed about it, your dancing ability on ice must be comparable, in terms of how much it's celebrated, with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Did you two ever watch footage of their dancing and swoon? T & D: Yes! Dean: They were very much a part of our viewing and we took a lot from them in their style and the movement and their performance quality. Yeah, absolutely, they were our idols. Fitz: You mentioned that you two have been doing it for 50 years. That means – dot three, carry one, subtract two – you must have started in the mid-70s. How much have your physical abilities waned? Are there many things you used to be able to do, that you simply cannot do now? Torvill: There are things that have got harder as we got older, and we're no longer 25, but we still feel that we can put on a show that we're happy with. And we've put it together with some amazing [younger] skaters from around the world. So we're really excited by the show, and the show itself tells a story, our story, right from the beginning, up until now. Loading Fitz: When Mick Jagger was 23 years old, he said, 'I hope I'm not still singing Can't Get No Satisfaction when I'm 30.' Could you two have conceived that you'd still be going 50 years later? And would you have been thrilled? Torvill: No and yes. We would never have imagined it would have been possible. Back then, when skaters turned professional, they would maybe do two years, three years in a professional show, and then, you know, sort of maybe go into teaching or just retire anyway. We've just been so lucky, with the way things happened for us that we were able to create several different tours, and then go back to the Olympics in '94 because that became a possibility, and that extended our professional careers. Dean: And then, in more recent times, television people came and said, would we be interested in teaching celebrities to skate? And that's when Dancing On Ice was born. And that extended us, too.

Lifting the mask: Squid Game's villain Front Man reveals (almost) all

The Age

13 hours ago

The Age

Lifting the mask: Squid Game's villain Front Man reveals (almost) all

There's a superb moment in the third and (ostensibly) final season of Squid Game when our hero Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), aka player 456, comes face to face with masked villain the Front Man. As the person in charge of the sadistic, bloody and fight-to-the-death competition removes his mask, Gi-hun realises he is in fact Oh Young-il, player 001 in season two, a man Gi-hun had thought of as a colleague, a co-conspirator and a fellow rebel – until the awful moment he realised he was actually just a traitor. Gi-hun is, understandably, furious. And not for the first time, the mild-mannered former autoworker finds himself with a knife in hand, and the opportunity to wreak vengeance. But is it in his nature to do so? For the Front Man, the question is both academic and inconsequential. 'Go ahead,' he taunts Gi-hun. 'If you kill me, it will make no difference. Someone else will take my place.' And in that line, we have creator Hwang Dong-hyuk's central and deeply pessimistic thesis: it's the system that's the problem, more than any individual. It is brutal, self-perpetuating, and essentially unbeatable. And as the final series of six episodes drops, we finally get to see how Netflix's massive breakout hit from Korea will end. 'Even though it's taken to the very extreme and it's portrayed in a very dramatic way, I believe Squid Game is a metaphor for the current society we live in, a condensed version of society,' Lee Byung-hun, the respected Korean actor who plays the Front Man, says through a translator. 'I think through that scene and through the overarching theme, we just wanted to raise the issue of unfairness and the other challenges that need to be addressed in the current society. 'Of course, the show is packed with a lot of entertainment and excitement. There's never a slow moment, and you're glued to the screen from start to finish because of all the intensity,' he continues. 'But at the end of the day, I think the series is trying to tackle the theme of loss of humanity. To what extent can people lose their humanity, what's the lowest point we can reach, and how do we find momentum to create a better world? I think this series creates room for us to have that conversation.' For Lee, the role offered a unique set of challenges. For starters, he's not playing one character, but three – Front Man, Oh Young-il and Hwang In-ho, the older brother of policeman Hwang Jun-ho, who was shot by the Front Man at the end of season one (but not, it transpired, fatally). Loading For another, a good chunk of his time on screen is spent with a mask over his face. And that, he admits, presented some issues. 'As an actor, you're really used to expressing your emotions through your facial expressions, your gaze and dialogue. But here my emotions had to be hidden. At first, it was a little frustrating, but as we went along, I found that acting behind a mask was also strangely fascinating because it had the viewers guessing what his expressions would be behind that mask. And as the viewers find out more and more about the Front Man, they get even more intrigued about which face or which emotions he might be having behind that mask. So I thought there was a weird charm to that.' Oh Young-il, player 001, reveals his backstory to Gi-hun in season two. He had a wife with a life-threatening medical condition, and she was pregnant and determined to go through with the birth even if it killed her. He borrowed money for treatment, but it wasn't enough. Eventually, he took a loan from a 'vendor'. When that was discovered by his employer, the loan was seen as a bribe, and he was sacked from the job to which he had devoted his life. 'These games,' he tells Gi-hun, 'were my last hope.' Is any of it true? 'Everything he's saying in that scene is a fact, except for one thing,' Lee says. 'The wife and their child passed away years ago. But aside from that, everything that he's saying is genuine, authentic Hwang In-ho.' Playing those scenes meant performing a subtle dance between the 'true' Hwang (who, like his brother, had been a policeman) and the invented Oh (whose name subtly echoes that of the old man creator of the game, Oh Il-nam, who wore 001 in the show's first season). As his brother discovered in the files hidden in the island complex's storage facility in season one, Hwang In-ho was the winner of the 2015 edition of the games (blink and you might have missed it). Now, in season three, we get a flashback to In-ho's time as a genuine player – and it offers some insight into his state of mind in the present day. 'When he first joined the game as a player, Hwang In-ho could have had some shred of compassion or hope left in humanity,' says Lee. 'But I believe the current Hwang In-ho is closest to the Front Man, who has zero hope in humanity and the world, a true pessimist.' When he enters the game as Oh Young-il, he tries to assume the persona of 'the most average person'. Lee concedes he had trouble envisaging how someone so bereft of faith in humanity could reconnect with that, until writer-director Hwang Dong-hyuk encouraged him to loosen up, to allow Young-il to be seduced by the pleasure of playing the games. Loading 'It added an eccentric, even a creepy, eerie, touch,' Lee says. 'I guess it all started off as an act. Take the pentathlon, for instance – I bet he started off acting and performing those emotions, but at a certain moment in time he got really immersed in those games, and once he was in the moment, he started feeling fear, joy and relief for real. Once he was in the moment, those emotions that he felt when he was actually a player in the game back in the day were really brought back.' What about his relationship with Gi-hun? Does he actually care about him, in a positive or a negative way? After all, he does spare him at the end of season two, though you could read that as an act of cruelty rather than mercy. What is really going on here? 'I think Gi-hun's success or failure or even death doesn't really matter much to the Front Man,' he says. He sees some element of himself in Gi-hun perhaps – of the self he once was – and 'he wants to break Gi-hun's spirit. 'You just wait and see, you're gonna make the same decision as me.' So he just wants to observe Gi-hun from his side, to see what happens.' Is there, though, a part of him that maybe hopes Gi-hun doesn't go down the same path, as a demonstration that not everyone is corruptible? 'As I was playing the Front Man throughout season three, that was what I had in mind,' Lee admits. 'I believe there were a lot of mixed emotions in his mind, like envy or jealousy … because he is a little ashamed about how he compromised and gave up at a certain point, but Gi-hun manages to hold on to his hope and humanity very persistently. Loading 'So even though the Front Man wants to break Gi-hun, I do believe there is a little shred of compassion left in him that still believes in human beings and just hopes that Gi-hun is right. So I believe one part of the Front Man is at least rooting for him. So I tried to express that, slightly.' Assuming Gi-hun survives to the end, do you think he would go into the game a third time, perhaps as player 001? Do you think he would choose survival at all cost? Do you think he might even take on the role of the Front Man himself? 'This is not a spoiler, this is just me speaking as a viewer,' says Lee. 'If I were given a choice between Gi-hun just participating in the game once again as a player with a different number and Gi-hun becoming the Front Man of the game, I think the latter option would be much more fascinating to watch.'

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Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Lifting the mask: Squid Game's villain Front Man reveals (almost) all

Bali meets France at this beautiful jungle resort

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Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Hey, Torvill and Dean, remember the time I danced with you?

Lifting the mask: Squid Game's villain Front Man reveals (almost) all

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