Dancing with the Stars judge Lorraine Barry has shared her upset following the cancellation of the hit RTE show.
Last week it was revealed that due to restrictions surrounding Covid-19, the show wouldn’t be back until at least 2022.
Lorraine reveals it’s incredibly disheartening, especially as so much planning and work had already gone into ensuring the safety and well-being of everyone involved.
“It doesn’t make sense. RTE had one of the best TV shows, if not the best, for those three months in Ireland. Sunday night the ratings proved that. I was shocked that the show was cancelled,” she told the Irish Mirror.
“So much work had already been done by the production company. We were going to introduce Pods, and the idea of that was terrific. We were all going to be in pods and therefore, if anyone would catch it, that pod would be shut down and the show could go on.”
“We can’t keep watching all these repeats on TV, we need something real, something that is happening that reflects these strange times.
“And seeing us doing the show with strict guidelines would have given the Irish public that fix of Sunday night entertainment and I think the Irish public are pretty devastated at losing the show as well.”
Earlier this week, show boss Larry Bass issued a statement, also expressing his frustrations.
“The safety and welfare of our crews and celebrities is our main priority,” he began.
“We worked closely with RTÉ and BBC Studios over the past three months to explore the feasibility of producing the show in a safe environment.
“While we had a robust plan to deliver a different but spectacular series in 2021, regrettably, Ireland continues to grapple with the ever-changing impact of Covid -19 and the risk to the show and everyone involved remains too high.”
He continued, “The loss of Dancing with the Stars is also devastating for ShinAwiL as a company that has tried to grow over these last 21 years. Also our 150 crew members who work so tirelessly to make the show what it is. Over the past four seasons, we’ve become one big happy working family.
“Consequently, the burdens and uncertainty that comes with the loss of jobs and incomes is something that deeply affects us all. The future is now incredibly uncertain for us all and our families.
“All I can say is a heartfelt thanks to everyone that makes the show what it is.