'I'm petrified but I'll speak out if I think judges are wrong' - Maura

Maura Higgins is terrified at the prospect of performing live on Dancing On Ice in the coming weeks

Lynne Kelleher

Dancing On Ice contestant Maura Higgins says she won't be afraid to disagree with the judges on the hit show.

The Longford star has also revealed she is terrified at the thought of performing live on the series in the coming weeks

She told Hello! magazine she will be open to criticism from judges John Barrowman, Ashley Banjo, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean but she won't be afraid to challenge them.

"I still want to know what I'm doing right. It'll make me work harder the following week," she said.

Jelly

"If I disagree, I'm not going to be afraid to say it. I won't cry, I'll probably make them cry."

But she admitted she is full of nerves about her first live performance.

"In the tunnel before we come out in rehearsals my legs are like jelly. It's so scary.

"I keep forgetting the steps. I'm not a performer. I've never done anything like this in my whole life. I'm petrified."

The Irish model, who was the breakout star from Love Island last summer, said she feels it is harder to win over the public on ice.

"I feel like it's hard for me coming from Love Island," she said. "Obviously it was my mouth that got me to the final then, but on this I'm not talking. You just have to keep your mouth shut and smile."

The former grid girl said she loved the more daring parts of the performances with her skating partner Alexander Demetriou.

"I trust Alex 100pc. The lifts and the spins and stuff haven't been scaring me. I've been fine with all that," she added.

"It's the steps I'm struggling with. I love the spins and the lifts. I've been upside down and everything."

She said she had a good relationship with her partner.

"We have such a laugh and take the p**s out of each other, but we get the work done."

The 29-year-old, who shares her private life with Dancing With The Stars boyfriend Curtis Pritchard, says he hasn't been doling out any dancing tips.

"I think it's very different on the ice," she said.

"Training is already hard enough without going home and practising in the evenings.

"It's a lot of training. You want to take your mind off it when you go home.,"

She hopes to see Love Island stars in the audience, and added: "I'm very close to fellow Love Islanders Chris [Taylor], Molly-Mae [Hague], Tommy [Fury], Lucie [Donlan] and Joe [Garratt]."