Karen Barber is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 ice dancer.

Skating career

With partner Kim Spreyer, she is the 1977 World Junior silver medalist

World Junior Figure Skating Championships

The World Junior Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which younger figure skaters compete for the title of World Junior Champion...

. With partner Nicky Slater, she is the 1983 European bronze medalist

European Figure Skating Championships

The European Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition in which figure skaters compete for the title of European Champion...

. They represented Great Britain at the 1980 Winter Olympics

Great Britain at the 1980 Winter Olympics

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland competed as Great Britain at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, United States.-Medallists:- Alpine skiing:MenWomen- Biathlon:MenMen's 4 x 7.5 km relay...

, placing 12th, and at the 1984 Winter Olympics

Great Britain at the 1984 Winter Olympics

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland competed as Great Britain at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.-Medallists:- Alpine skiing:MenWomen- Biathlon:MenMen's 4 x 7.5 km relay...

, where they placed 6th.

Following her retirement from competitive skating, Barber worked as a coach and skated professionally.

Media work

She has appeared on Dancing on Ice

Dancing on Ice (UK)

Dancing on Ice is a British television show co-hosted by Christine Bleakley and Philip Schofield, in which celebrities and their professional partners figure skate in front of a panel of judges. The format, devised by LWT and Granada Television, has been a prime-time hit in eight different...

and Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice

Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice

Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice is an Australian reality television series which was based on the original British version, Dancing on Ice. The series premiered on the Nine Network on Tuesday, 11 July 2006 at , and involved celebrities ice dancing on a specially constructed ice rink located in...

as a judge/coach, and with her husband and two daughters as contestants on the All Star Family Fortunes UK game show.

Competitive highlights

(with Slater)

Event	1978-79	1979-80	1980-81	1981-82	1982-83	1983-84	1984-85
Olympic Winter Games		12th				6th
World Championships World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...	13th	10th	7th	7th	5th	5th	6th
European Championships European Figure Skating Championships The European Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition in which figure skaters compete for the title of European Champion...	11th	8th	5th	5th	3rd	4th	4th
British Championships British Figure Skating Championships The British Figure Skating Championships are a figure skating competition held annually to crown the national champions of the United Kingdom...				2nd	2nd		1st
NHK Trophy NHK Trophy The NHK Trophy is an international, senior-level figure skating competition held as part of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. Figure skaters compete in the disciplines of ladies' singles, men's singles, pair skating, and ice dancing....			2nd	1st			1st
Skate America Skate America Skate America is an international, senior-level figure skating competition held as part of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. It is organized by the United States Figure Skating Association. The location changes yearly...				3rd
Skate Canada International Skate Canada International The Skate Canada International is an international, senior-level invitation-only figure skating competition organized by Skate Canada. It is the second competition of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating. The location changes yearly. Medals are awarded in four disciplines: Ladies' singles, Men's...			2nd	2nd

(with Spreyer)

Event	1976-1977
World Junior Championships World Junior Figure Skating Championships The World Junior Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which younger figure skaters compete for the title of World Junior Champion...	2nd

Personal Life

In 2010 Barber announced that her and her husband Stephen Pickavance were separating, after Barber spent 5 nights at Deans flat after his divorce with Jill Trenary

Jill Trenary

Jill Ann Trenary is an American figure skater. She was a 3-time U.S. champion and won the World Figure Skating Championships in 1990....

. At the start of 2011 Barber and Dancing On Ice Co-Star Christopher Dean

Christopher Dean

Christopher Colin Dean, OBE is a famous British ice dancer who won a gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics with his skating partner Jayne Torvill...

 were caught kissing outside a restaurant. A week later Barber and Dean announced that they were seeing each other but it was early days.

External links

• Sports-reference profile