West Country's Eddie the Eagle on being revealed on ITV show The Masked Dancer
A famous winter olympian from the West Country has 'jumped' into the limelight again after being unmasked on the new ITV show 'The Masked Dancer'.
Eddie the Eagle became the fourth celebrity to be unveiled on the programme after Jordan Banjo, Louise Redknapp and Dita Von Teese.
On the show Michael Edwards, affectionately known as Eddie, said that he had been dancing on and off for over 20 years.
The show follows the same theme as the successful Masked Singer where celebrities aim to win the competition anonymously whilst being asked to reveal their identities one by one throughout the series.
After being voted off by judges Mo Giligan, Oti Mabuse, Davina McCall and Jonathan Ross the eagle fell just short of the final.
Eddie, who was born in Cheltenham, first represented Great Britain in the ski jumping at the 1987 World Championships in Bavaria, West Germany.
He then qualified for the olympics the following year by default, despite finishing 55th, as he was the only representative in the event for team Great Britain.
The 57-year-old then went to the Calgary Olympics in Canada and, despite finishing in last place, gained fans from all over the world with his exploits.
Eddie's story was brought back in to focus in 2016 when a biopic film starring Taron Egerton and Hugh Jackman was released.
When discussing his experience on the show the former olympian said that it was an "absolutely brilliant experience".
"I really enjoyed doing it show it was great fun and a great experience," he said.
"It was very difficult because in the studio it was easy to get the moves and the dances right but once I got the outfit on it became really difficult.
"When I was dressed as the rubber chicken in the show it looked like I wasn't moving very much but I promise I was. I just did the best I could.
"On the first show they were miles off guessing who I was. It was nice getting to see their shocked faces when I was revealed.
Whilst he said he enjoyed himself on the show Eddie hinted that he may need some help in getting out of his character's frame of mind after spending a long time doing detailed research.
He even suggested that he might have to look at changing his name in the future.
"I was looking up how to be a chicken and how they moved as well. Now I am going to need therapy because I can't stop thinking about being a chicken."
"Am I an eagle or am I a chicken now I don't even know anymore!"
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