COMEDIAN and presenter Rufus Hound has been announced as one of the celebrities battling it out on ITV’s Dancing on Ice.
The funny man admitted he was doing the show for the money.
Who is Rufus Hound?
Robert James Blair Simpson, 41, has worked extensively in TV, radio and the theatre.
After leaving Godalming College in joined a PR agency but started doing stand up in the evenings.
In 2000 he left his job as an account executive for Claire’s Accessories and became a full-time stand up comedian.
When he was at the Edinburgh Festival he first used the stage name Rufus Hound.
Over the years he has appeared on a number of TV comedy shows and quizzes including Nevermind the Buzzcocks and Celebrity Juice.
He quit Celebrity Juice following an explosive row with Kim Woodburn.
Hound was a regular panellist on Keith Lemon’s TV panel game show, and got into an unexpected slanging match with the Celebrity Big Brother star.
And he told comedian Richard Herring on his podcast that not only did he feel “marginalised” on the show, but the lack of support from the producers helped make his mind up to leave.
He has also had a number of acting roles.
In 2015, Hound played Sam Swift in an episode of the ninth series of Doctor Who and has also appeared in the Channel 4 drama series Cucumber as an eccentric character called Rupert.
In 2016, Hound played the part of Duncan in the sixth series of the Sky 1 sitcom Trollied.
Hound was embroiled in controversy in 2017 after making wild claims that Theresa May orchestrated the Manchester bombing to help the Tories win the election.
Fans initially thought his tweets were a sick joke, but the Celebrity Juice star stoked anger even further by insisting he was serious.
He even compared the Manchester atrocity to the 1933 Reichstag Fire in Germany, an arson attack suspected to have been staged by Nazis to increase Hitler’s grip on power.
What has he said about Dancing on Ice?
Hound has made no bones about he is appearing for the money.
He said: “I’m doing it for the money. I don’t know if you’ve heard but about six months ago this global pandemic hit and made just about everything I’ve ever done to earn a pound note disappear.
“And so this point has arrived and they said ‘we’ll pay you’ and I said ‘do you know something? I love ice skating.’”
“Training starts in a couple of weeks. I’ve spent the last twenty years in the pub mainly.”
Despite that Rufus has promised he will have fun and give it a good go.
“Seriously…I think the show will be really fun. And I don’t know anyone who has done the show who hasn’t had an amazing time doing it,” he explained.
“It will be fun, it will be an interesting experience. Also, the longer you do it the more invested you are and the more part of the gang you feel if you get to turn up week after week.”
In the show he is partnered with professional dancer Robin Johnstone.
Is Hound married and does he have any children?
Hound married Beth Johnson in 2007, a year after they met at the Reading Festival.
The couple got married in Las Vegas’ Little White Wedding Chapel
But he announced in October 2020 the pair had split in April that year.
Taking to Twitter, Rufus wrote: “In April, Beth and I made the sad decision to end our marriage.
“We will always have much love and respect for each other.
“Even though we are separated we will always remain best friends and, as always, our family will remain our number one priority.”
They have two children together.
