We’re sad to see the end of Anne Cassin’s Dancing with the Stars journey, before she took to the floor, she spoke to VIP Magazine.
We’re used to seeing her making moves up and down the country on Nationwide each week, but now, we’ll be seeing her making very different ones, as Anne Cassin prepares to shake and shimmy in her sequins during the brand new series of Dancing with the Stars.
“What an adventure this is going to be,” she beamed from the glam chair as we prepped for this shoot at Dublin’s Wilder Townhouse, where she joined us straight from rehearsals. “It’s exhausting, but so much fun. Honestly, I’m just so excited for the live shows now. It’s so far out of my comfort zone, but you have to push yourself and try new things. I want to do as much as I can, say yes to as much as I can. I’m ready for this!”
Anne’s got many people in her corner – and plenty of former contestants offering her words of wisdom and encouragement from the sidelines.
“I rang Mary Kennedy the day I was first approached, way back in August. Another person I’ve spoken to a lot about this is Teresa Mannion. She was in the very first season back in 2016. The two of them have been my wingwomen. Oh, and Marty Morrissey and Eileen Dunne, too. They’ve been brilliant.”
The support doesn’t go unnoticed, but most particularly, from her family; husband Donagh and three children, Ellen (27), Joe (25) and Heather (20). “They can see that I’m getting to do something I want to do, and they’ll have my back the entire way. They’re excited – and maybe even secretly proud!” There’s no doubt about that!
Here, we chat to Anne about her days on and off the dance floor, the importance of friendship, family life and three decades in the broadcasting world.
Anne, happy New Year! How do you feel going into 2026?
Happy New Year! It’s time for resolutions and mine is to get fit! I laid off the turkey, ham and pudding over Christmas and I’m getting ready for Dancing with the Stars!
How excited are you?
Ah I’m incredibly excited, but nervous too. During the training stage, it was a little bit daunting because I’ve n background in dance at all. The extent of it was Irish dancing at the age of 10 in school and the only time after that was around a handbag at a wedding! I love music and I think I have a sense of rhythm but nothing comes easy. These classes and steps are really demanding! After training, I’m pretty wiped out.
You’re very fit, a long time runner, you’ve gone to Everest base camp, has that prepared you for this?
I think so. I would run a lot, do yoga, so I’ve a good level of fitness I think – or I thought! There’s nothing like the tiredness you feel after a training session though, trying to learn how to do a Fox Trot and get all your steps in order. Part of it is stretching muscles you didn’t think you’d have to stretch, and also the effort of concentrating. But I’m guided by an amazing professional dancer, Robert Rowinski. I’m so lucky to work with him. He’s won twice in Poland so I’m in good hands. He’s a great teacher.
Would this be very outside your comfort zone?
Very much! There’s been times – and my family will know because they’ve heard me walking around the house at 4am – when I’ve wondered if I’m out of my mind. The part of it that’s been trickiest to manage and harder than I thought was keeping it silent for a long time. I wasn’t able to give the game away in work, with colleagues or friends. I told my husband and kids straight away and the family, my siblings too. There’d been times where I wanted to burst and talk about it to everyone, tell them about the sequins, the rehearsals and plans. Plans was a big one, I had to be so vague and elusive but it’s only because I was trying to catch up on the training.
You’d been approached before, so why did you decide to say yes this time?
I had been approached yes, but the time wasn’t right. My children were a little bit younger, I’m also in a different place mentally I suppose, with the running of the family, and it seemed like the right thing to do. I’m all about doing new things right now. I want to have a new experience and try new things. I’m embracing it!
Are you competitive in nature or just doing it for fun?
Ah, I’m on the fence about that. I want it to be an enjoyable experience, no question about it, but I want to do as well as I possibly can. I don’t want to take the pressure off. I want to do well but enjoy it.
What are you most looking forward to?
The live shows. I love the training and rehearsals, the glam side of it, the diamonds and makeup, but what really gives me a charge is live tv and I have done it for quite a few years. I used to be a newsreader, used to do CrimeCall, so I want to exercise that muscle again. It’s like nothing else! You really focus your mind to get that high energy. It’ll be scary as well, but I’m mentally ready for it. Now this is me talking now, I might fall apart on the night.
Not at all, you’ll fly it! You’re great friends with Mary Kennedy who took part previously, has she had any words of advice or encouragement?
I rang Mary on the day I was approached, way back in August. I’ve had lots of conversations with her. There was no ambiguity on her side, she said ‘You’ve got to do it, it’s the best thing ever! Do it, do it, do it!’ Another person I’ve spoken to a lot about it is Teresa Mannion. She was in the very first one back in 2016. The two of them have been like my wingwomen. There’s been moments when I really needed to talk to someone and it’s been one of them! Oh, and Marty Morrissey too! Eileen Dunne has been in touch too and she actually partnered with Robert two seasons ago. She’s been brilliant.
Friendships are so important and it’s so lovely you have them all to lean on during this.
I feel very privileged. They’ve all been great encouragement. It was on Nationwide where you and Mary really solidified your great bond.
That’s been a huge part of your life for over a decade, 13 or 14 years now?
Oh we’ve been friends for such a long time. Mary came to my wedding in 2004 and that was way before Nationwide. We’ve been in each others lives for quite a number of years but yes, we definitely got much closer on Nationwide. We’ve kept in great contact even after she left. We celebrate family milestones together, meet regularly for a canter around Bushy Park. I started in 2012, so yeah 14 years and it gave me brilliant friendships.
You must adore it!
I love television and making shows. I love Ireland and Irish people. It’s given me a really unique position to see the best of what we have in this country of ours. The kind of stories that we feature are very positive, they celebrate the best so generally people are very happy to see us when we rock up with our cameras and our lights. News and current affairs can do the serious stuff, but we’re there on the schedule three nights a week to provide an antidote. We’re able to platform parts of the country that wouldn’t normally get the attention that it deserves. It gives me a lot of pride.
Would you say it’s a fulfilling job? Does it make you happy?
Ah yeah, absolutely! A lot of my job is the stuff that’s done off air, so making people feel at ease, encouraging them, trying to build people’s confidence. It can be quite daunting for people to get in front of the camera and be interviewed. At the end of a filming day, it could be six, seven, eight hours, and we’re all hugging each other by the end. That’s my measure – if you hug someone at the end, it’s authentic! I love it.
Do you enjoy it not only from a work point of view, but life in general too, getting to see different places, more importantly, meet different people?
Oh for sure! You can get a bit set in your ways, set in your circle, set in your routine. It’s constantly a source of wonder, amazement and pride seeing people do such different things around the country. It can take you all over the place! We’ve done lots of stories along the Wild Atlantic Way, semi-tourist, semi-heritage, semi-sport stories! And also around the city too. Even though we’re nationwide, we don’t want to forget about Dublin either.
You must be a big people person, are you?
I am, definitely. I don’t think you could do the job without being a people person. You need to be curious too. Curious about people, what makes them tick, how they work and do business. If you didn’t have a general interest in people, you’d be backed into a corner with this job. I do have that – and I like people!
Would you get stopped a lot out and about, people recognising you from work and wanting to chat?
It happened a few weeks ago, I got stopped by a fella outside the Liffey Trust dance studios. He just saw me as someone from Nationwide and didn’t put two and two together about the dancing. I thought I was going to be caught! But yeah, you’d get a bit of it, however Irish people are so very nice. You also realise sometimes when someone has noticed you but wants to respect your privacy. I’m pretty open though and very low-key about how I conduct my business. I don’t go around all the time with a full face of makeup, nice gear, so I take it as a compliment when people see me and still say hello.
Would you consider yourself to be confident and outgoing? I suppose you have to be to some degree working in tv, but especially now with dancing too.
That’s a deepish one. I’d have my worries the odd time. I have my stresses and strains in life. I’ve pretty much always put on my game face for work. I’d be very professional in that regard. I’m sociable, but I don’t need to be the life and soul of the party. I don’t need to be the showiest person in the room. I’m very much a people person, but if I’m not feeling it, I fake it. Fake it ‘till you make it as they say!
Absolutely! Anne, the kids must be so proud of you.
Ah they’re delighted now, I must say. They’re at an age now where they can enjoy it. My daughter Heather is 20 and she’s on Eramus. She was so excited when I told her that Paudie from The Traitors was going to be taking part with me. They’re all very supportive. They can see that I’m getting to do something I want to do, and they’ll have my back all throughout the way. They’re beyond the age where they’re like, ‘Oh God mum, don’t do that, it’s mortifying!’ [laughs] Ellen is 27, Joe is 25 and Heather is 20.
They’re excited – and maybe even secretly proud, but who knows?
They absolutely are!
Will they be in the audience rooting for you during your first live show?
They will for the first one, absolutely. Heather will be going back to Germany afterwards and Ellen to Edinburgh so it’s the only time the four of them, my kids and husband, will be there together.
That’ll be really special.
It will be, but I don’t want to talk to them before I do the show, only afterwards. I’ve got past the nerves, it used to really freak me out but now I like to go into my professional head and focus. I zone them out.
Life will be moving at 100 miles an hour for the next while, but when it all slows down again, will you take some time for yourself and your husband Donagh, to switch off for a little bit?
I really hope so. We go to Kerry a lot and spend a lot of time there. We’re very outdoorsy, we’re always walking, hiking and we do a lot of active holidays. We’re not ones for lying by the pool in the sun. I do it with my sister, but Donagh and I don’t do that.
You mightn’t be able to do that with the blisters on your feet from all the dancing!
Actually, do you know what I got for Christmas? It’s the coolest thing. It was a secret Santa present from my sister-in-law. It was a pair of these shoes that proper dancers wear between dances, so when I got those resting dance shoes, I thought, ‘My God, it’s actually happening!’
It sure is! Summing it up, how do you feel looking ahead at the next few weeks?
Full of excitement and dying to immerse myself in this world, get better and enjoy it. You have to do the work before you can enjoy it, you can’t cheat the system, but I’ll try do it all well! That’s my big wish. It’s all very exciting.
We wish you the very best of luck!
Thanks VIP!
