Kayleigh Trappe has been dancing up a storm on Dancing with the Stars.
“I have zero dance experience, and I have to remind myself I’m not a pro-dancer. I keep getting told about this word ‘journey’ so it’s all a journey. There’s a fire in my belly to keep going,” she jokingly tells VIP Magazine as she reflects on the first four weeks in the competition.
And while she wants to make the judges sit up and take notice, the only reason she’s doing it is for herself.
She tells us she wants to make herself proud.
“Social media is great but I want to branch out and show different sides to me. It’s the experience of a lifetime,” she tells us with the biggest smile.
“Growing up I loved sports but I was never very good at it. I always fell short at every hurdle. But this is the kind of show where I want to finally, in some sense, do myself proud.
“I already have done myself proud but with my demons from the past, I have a point to prove to myself rather than to the public or to family and friends. I want to go as far as I can go.”
She, of course, has the support of her family who have been coming every week as well as her boyfriend Tom who she says has been “an amazing support”.
“When I get on the dancefloor, I look at my family and I’m raring to go. It’s so lovely to see your family out there supporting you.”
Despite having 187K TikTok followers Kayleigh has never forgotten her humble roots as she jokes: “Who do I think I am?”
“I grew up in the sticks of county Monaghan and I’m so proud of it! I haven’t been home since Christmas, I miss home so much. And I long for the day I get to go back home and see everything because my family keeps sending me posters and different kinds of support back home. But I don’t believe it!” she laughs.
“There are businesses and nightclubs I used to go to when I was 18, and I hadn’t a clue what I wanted to do with my life, are now sharing posters of me! The support of home and the support of Irish people in general is amazing. I got a message from a woman down in Cork thanking me because her daughter was in a but of a rut and I inspired her to go back to do theatre with her friends. That’s cheesy, but to even know that you’re hitting people on a personal note like that is incredible. And the Irish people are just amazing, the support has been amazing. I’m so proud of my wee county and I’m so proud to be Irish.”
Another big reason why she is dressing up as a cat and giving it socks on live television is for her students who she taught before becoming a social media sensation.
“In a good way, when I started making TikToks it was all accidental so I never questioned myself. Kids are everything to me and I was so happy being a teacher. But when things started opening up for me I knew I’d be a fool not to take life by the horns and go for it,” she tells us.
“I obviously think about the kids a lot and think about them being like, ‘What is Miss Trappe doing?’ I think back to my teachers and I know I would be buzzing. And the parents have been messaging me. I just hope I’m doing them proud. I miss them so much! They’re the most important thing to me.”
It’s certainly not the last we’ve seen of Kayleigh on our tellies as she guest starred in Fair City over Christmas and she is keeping her fingers crossed to return.
“Well they haven’t killed me off!” she laughs, “So I would definitely keep the door open. It’s a staple in my household and I would love to go back. I loved being a set.”
With her acting chops and now she’s stepped into the world of reality TV, we have to ask would she ever be interested in The Traitors.
“People have been messaging me saying they think I’d be great in it. Siobhan [McSweeney] is the presenter of the Irish one and she is one of my idols. So I would love to do it. But I’d be at a disadvantage because everyone would just assume I’m a traitor.”
Dancing with the Stars continues on RTÉ One on Sunday at 6:30pm.