Jennifer Ellison was left suffering from shock and had blood in her hair after she cut her head during Dancing On Ice.

The 28-year-old former Brookside actress injured herself with her own skate during tonight's show.

Host Phillip Schofield told ITV1 viewers she had "a little bit of shock". Jennifer's skating partner Daniel Whiston said the injury occurred as she completed a scorpion kick.

"It was just a very very scary moment," he said. "I saw some contact and I thought it was the leather of her skate."

He added: "Her whole hair was just red because obviously the heart's pumping and a lot of blood's come out. But she's in great hands."

The professional dancer described her as a "trooper" and praised her for finishing the routine. "Everyone cares about her very much, including me, so she will be okay," he said.

Ellison, who wore a sizzling red outfit for the Valentine's Day-themed show, was scored 19 out of 30 by the judges, but she was off-screen receiving treatment when the results were announced.

Robin Cousins revealed that his fellow judge Katarina Witt warned in rehearsals that "she's got to be careful". He said: "As a dancer the last thing she would think about would be what's on the end of her boot.

"The other thing that people do forget is that the skates make your feet the heaviest part of your body so just doing a little bit of a flick certainly makes the whole thing go a lot harder."

Head coach Karen Barber said the incident demonstrated "how dangerous ice-skating is". She went on: "The blades are so sharp. The adrenaline tonight went a little bit further and it was an accident."