Dancing on Ice star Briand McFadden hypnotised to help skating nerves

A Blackpool hypnotist put his powers of persuasion to the test to help a struggling Dancing on Ice star.
Brian McFadden on the iceBrian McFadden on the ice
Brian McFadden on the ice

Stephen Mawdsley, 53, met ex-Westlife star and TV presenter Brian McFadden, who is taking part in the latest series of ITV reality show Dancing on Ice, earlier this month

He had been contacted by the show to help the 38-year-old celeb, who had suffered from nervousness on the ice from week one.

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Stephen, of Ribble Hypnotherapy on Mowbray Drive, Bispham, said: “We had a chat and I hypnotised Brian, and we did some NLP to help with his nerves.”

Stephen MawdsleyStephen Mawdsley
Stephen Mawdsley

NLP, Stephen explained, stands for neuro-linguistic programming, and is used by some hypnotherapists as a way of assisting personal development through talking.

He said: “I talked Brian through some techniques in and out of hypnosis to help with his nerves.

“He was a very nice fellow, and very pleased with his dance partner [Alex Murphy]. She came as well, and she was wonderful.

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“Hypnosis is a way of getting into the unconcious mind as a way of dealing with patterns of behaviour.

“It’s not a cure, it’s a vehicle to get into the mind.

“Hypnosis is not what people think. People tend to be worried about it, but it’s not men in big coats and dangling pocket watches at all.

“Hypnosis is just a way to gtap into the mind to help make the changes that you want to make.”

Stephen’s efforts seemed to be a success, as Brian McFadden told Dancing on Ice presenter Holly Willoughby he “wasn’t that nervous” following his first live performance after his treatment.

On Sunday, he suffered a blunder when he dropped his partner Alex Murphy towards the end of their routine – but still made it through to the next round.

Reality TV’s Gemma Collins was voted off.