Dancing with the Stars contestants are like buses…
You have to wait a whole day for a reveal or five come at once.
Yes, five contestants have been revealed tonight and we couldn’t be more excited.
Elaine Crowley, Kevin Dundon, Kayleigh Trappe, Rhys McClenaghan and Yasmin Seky shimmied onto tonight’s Late Late Show.
Each of the celebrities spoke to Patrick Kielty about competing for the coveted glitterball trophy when the new series returns to RTÉ One and RTÉ Player next month.
The five celebrities were joined by Karen Byrne, who has been announced in recent days as the newest judge to join the Dancing with the Stars panel. Karen, who is a two-time winner across seven seasons, shared her insights on what it takes to bring home the glitterball not once, but twice.
Elaine Crowley has been central to Virgin Media’s daytime schedule for over twenty years and currently co-hosts Ireland AM alongside Martin King.
Elaine commented: “I’ve never done anything remotely like this before, never mind in front of so many people. But my eldest sister said to me, you haven’t put yourself out of your comfort zone for decades. You can interview the politicians. You can do all the stuff on Ireland AM, but challenge yourself for once. So, class of 2025 bring it on. What’s the worst that can happen?”
Celebrity chef, presenter and author Kevin Dundon is a household name in Ireland’s culinary circles. Best known for presenting television series such as Guerrilla Gourmet and Heat, Kevin is also an author and has published several cookbooks.
Kevin commented: “I’m excited. The fact that I’m actually going to learn to dance means that my wife will hopefully now enjoy dancing with me at weddings, and I won’t make a complete fool of myself! I’m a little bit nervous, as it’s quite difficult to learn the moves. It’s tricky. As a chef, I’m coordinated, but not with my feet. My first dance is an American Smooth, so I’m going to treat it like a risotto, nice and slow with a little bit of excitement at the end.”
Kayleigh Trappe is a social media star from Co. Monaghan. A former primary school teacher, she has amassed a huge following of over 400,000 followers and millions of likes on TikTok and Instagram for her comedy sketch videos, in which she lip syncs along perfectly to pop culture clips and iconic Irish celebrity moments.
Kayleigh said: “I’m so excited. It feels so surreal, especially because I’m so used to just being behind the camera in the comfort of my own home, and now I’m going full glitz and glam. It’s a big change but I can’t wait to get the glitter ball rolling! This type of glam has never been a part of my life, but I have so much support from my family and friends at home in Monaghan. I can’t wait to be in the midst of it all now.”
Another Olympian! Gold medalist Rhys McClenaghan will be showing off his dance skills.
Rhys commented: “I’m thrilled to take on this new challenge and look forward to bringing some gymnastics skills to the dance floor. I am approaching my training for the 2025 competition year differently. I took some time to travel, and as I begin my first training block for the LA Games, I will also have some fun figuring out how to dance! Hopefully, with the guidance of my pro dance partner, I can bring some of my pommel horse flair to the dance floor, too!”
Yasmin Seky is an actress from Dublin. Best known for her breakout role in the RTÉ drama series Kin, in which she played the role of Nikita. Yasmin’s character was embroiled in the drama of the Kinsella family when she became the love interest of lead character, Viking.
Yasmin commented: “I’m a little nervous, as I’ve never really done anything like this before. But I’m really excited too. I suppose nervousness and excitement manifests in the body the same way, so I don’t know which one I am! I think the anxiety that I have from time to time motivated me to take part. With acting on screen, if you mess up you can go again, but with this you get one shot and you just have to make it happen!”
Dancing with the Stars returns to RTÉ One in January
