We'd love Beckham to get his skates on

"He's retired now – it's the perfect opportunity."

Together, she and Christopher Dean are trying to decide on their perfect line-up for the last-ever series of Dancing on Ice. Kylie is another dream contestant.

The gold medal-winning pair have called time on the skating spectacular after eight years of slips, flips and headbangers. They will bow out with a final series later this year on ITV before a live tour in 2014, which, as well as celebrating all things DOI, will also mark the 30th anniversary of their Olympics win with the immortal Bolero routine.

"It's been pretty hectic since we've made the announcement," says Christopher, 54. "We've been out and about speaking to people all over the country. We feel it is the right time and the right decision for Dancing On Ice. It's also been 30 years since the Olympics and it feels as though we've come full circle and can combine that."

Jayne, 55, adds: "This was something we talked about a few months ago and we decided it was the right thing to do. We went to ITV and they said they didn't want to continue the show without us. Everyone was in agreement with the decision and everyone wants to make the best series ever to go out on."

There has been much talk about DOI's ratings over the last few series – it hit our screens with a high of 13 million viewers but has since seen its audience cut by almost half – but Torvill and Dean insist there is no bad blood between them and the ITV bosses and that the show has come to its natural end.

But say what you will about the recent ratings struggle, but there is no denying that DOI has been one of the biggest TV shows of the noughties. Contestants have included actors, pop stars and Olympians, with household names including Pamela Anderson, Kelly Holmes and Bonnie Langford all getting their skates on. Its winners have been actress Gaynor Faye, rugby player Kyran Bracken, former HearSay singer Suzanne Shaw, X Factor's Ray Quinn, soap star Hayley Tamaddon, Sam Attwater from EastEnders, Matthew Wolfenden from Emmerdale and Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle. It's also brought us some truly memorable TV moments. Todd Carty skating off set being the one that people cherish the most. Even host Phillip Schofield admitted it was his "favourite moment ever on Dancing On Ice". And he was next to Holly when she wore that dress.

But Torvill and Dean admit they were not always sure the concept would be a winner.

"When we were first approached to do the show we were very hesitant as to whether it would work," says Chris. "We started thinking about it and then working on it but we still felt it would be a one-year thing, that that would be it.

"But we are so proud of it now and could never have predicted the success of it.

"We have great memories of it. We have met so many wonderful people. People who will be friends for life and who we have great respect for. It's just been a wonderful experience." And his favourite ever skaters?

"Ray Quinn was just incredible and then there's Sam, Kyran, Hayley and Chris Fountain. And, of course, Todd Carty was TV gold."

And Carty wasn't the only comedy contestant. From the sublime to the ridiculous, DOI has seen it all. Where else could you find Vanilla Ice, Angela Rippon and Ashley from Coronation Street all under one roof." And dressed in sequins. Andi Peters was another fave when it came to his skating skills, or lack thereof, along with Sinitta and Lauren Goodger.

However, for every Carty there is a Quinn and both Jayne and Chris say they have been shocked by just how high the standard of some celebrity skaters has been.

"Each year, the standard has got higher and higher and this year I'm sure will be the best yet. At first, we had no idea of what standard to expect but we have been pleasantly surprised," says Jayne."But it's not just the celebrities and their skating partners that make the show what it is.There is such a lot of effort that goes into a show like this, from backstage to the performers. The costumes, the lighting, hair and make-up always look spectacular.

"And it is all-consuming. Very intense. It's six months of your life. We get six months break in the summer but it does take over your life. The whole team is very dedicated."

But, as is almost inevitable when you get a bunch of celebs together, there have been rumours of diva-ish demands and bad behaviour behind the scenes. Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson was apparently paid £1,000 a second for her skating stint and there has been more than a few romances between the stars and their partners.

Luckily, it doesn't fall to Torvill and Dean to sort all that out.

"We don't work with the so-called divas away from the ice – that's the team. We just coach them on the ice thankfully," says Chris.

Jayne adds: "But Pamela was actually great to work with. We were shocked that she went out first because she had good skating skills. I think the nerves just got the better of her."

And speaking of divas, how could we not mention Jason Gardiner? A judge so badly behaved he was given the boot for one series because of his cutting comments. Don't forget, this is the man who told Tana Ramsay she had the "sensuality of a frigid school mistress" and snapped "if your opinion still mattered, you'd be on the panel" to former judge – and Chris's partner – Karen Barber. Awkward.

"Some of the comments from Jason have definitely been highs and lows within themselves," Jayne says, tactfully. "I can't believe some of the words he comes out with but he has been a fantastic asset to the show."

Following the final TV series comes the live tour, which will hit Birmingham between April 18 and 21.

"It will be the best of all the series – a real "best of" line-up," says Chris. "We want Ray and Hayley and Kyran. We'd also love people like Todd and Andi Peters, even though he hasn't even picked up a skate since leaving the show."

As well as the celebs, Torvill and Dean's perfect Bolero routine from the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics will be a huge part of the live shows. More than 24 million people watched the young couple from Nottingham score maximum points for the routine and it remains the highpoint of their career to date.

It also sparked rumours of a relationships between the pair, which they only coughed to years later on Piers Morgan's Life Stories when they admitted "dabbling" with romance in the early stages of their career. Twitter went into meltdown.

"The Bolero will be a key part of the tour," Jayne, who has been married to US sound engineer Phil Christensen for 23 years and has two children, reveals. "And it could even be the original routine."

Chris adds: "I keep looking at Jayne and she keeps looking at me and we're obviously both thinking 'should we do the original one?'. The splits is the one move we're thinking about the most however – that could be a key moment in itself."

"It's amazing that the Bolero had such an impact," agrees Jayne. "The whole format of Dancing On Ice was based on it and we're still talking about it all these years later. Sometimes I have to pinch myself that all of this has happened because of it."

And their gold medals? Where are they now?

"We both keep them in safes in our homes," says Chris, a dad of two. "It's not like it's on the mantelpiece or anything."

After the tour, the pair can look forward to a little rest and relaxation. Both admit those final few shows will be emotional. But, after that, there are a few secret projects up their spangly sleeves.

"Yes, we have a couple of projects in the pipeline," says Jayne. "We'd like to do a bit of both TV and live stuff."

But Chris adds: "But we will still be skating together in the future, the fans don't need to worry about that."

By Elizabeth Joyce

The Final Tour 2014 starts in March next year. Tickets on sale now. For venue and ticket details, click here or call 08444 99 99 55