Denise Welch has admitted that many of her friends thought she was unwise to take part in Dancing On Ice, while she was battling clinical depression.

The Loose Women star has battled with the mental illness for decades and said that she is proud of how well she has coped with all the nerves and stress that come with appearing on a primetime TV series.

She explained to The Mirror:

“When I agreed to take part friends asked me ‘Are you f**king mental? With all your problems? Why would you put yourself in a situation when you are being criticised and judged by 10 million people every week?’

“But I’ve already been to the darkest place possible and although my depression can creep up on me at any time – even with the medication I take – I didn’t want it to be an excuse not to challenge myself. I’m proud that I’m doing the show and coping with the nerves and stress in the same way as all the other contestants.”

Denise also admitted that she is ‘thrilled’ to have survived for such a long time on the reality TV series, despite the fact that she is twenty years older than some of her fellow competitors. She added:

“What a lovely thought that me at 52 – 20 years older than some of the other girls on the show – could even have lasted this long.

“I know it’s the public that have kept me in and that’s been amazing. I’ll never be the best on the show but I’m giving it my all and am thrilled to be waving the banner for older women.”