The next five Dancing with the Stars celebrities are revealed
Elaine Crowley, Kevin Dundon, Kayleigh Trappe, Rhys McClenaghan and Yasmin Seky announced on tonight’s Late Late Show
The next five celebrity dancers taking part in the new season of Dancing with the Stars have been revealed! 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.
Meet the dancers:
ELAINE CROWLEY
Cork’s Elaine Crowley is ready to cha-cha-cha onto our screens!
Elaine is one of the country’s most popular television presenters. She has been central to Virgin Media’s daytime schedule for over twenty years and currently co-hosts Ireland AM alongside Martin King. Beginning her career in the newsroom, Elaine’s outgoing personality and likeability saw her eventually make the move to entertainment, where she hosted shows such as Midday and her self-titled talk show, Elaine.
Praised for being incredibly honest about the personal struggles she has faced throughout her career, Elaine has spoken frankly about being diagnosed with dysphoria and overcoming dark periods in her life.
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?”
KEVIN DUNDON
Chef Kevin Dundon prepares to bring his fiery kitchen skills to the dancefloor!
Celebrity chef, presenter and author Kevin 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 has cooked for Irish and US presidents and the late Queen Elizabeth II. He has appeared on various shows on Irish, British, Canadian and American television. Kevin recently launched his own podcast, Under The Grill, alongside journalist Caoimhe Young.
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
TikTok sensation Kayleigh Trappe is all set to twist and shout on the dancefloor!
Kayleigh 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.
Some of her most famous sketches have attracted attention from those she has imitated, including Nadine Coyle, the cast of Derry Girls, Peter Crouch and Abbey Clancy among others.
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.”
RHYS MCCLENAGHAN
Can pommel horse champion Rhys McClenaghan bag another glittering grand slam this year?
Rhys is a gymnast and gold medal Olympian from Co. Down. Widely recognised as one of the best pommel horse specialists of his generation, Rhys made history when he became the first ever gymnast to win an Olympic gold medal in this sport for Ireland at the Paris 2024 Olympics. He has celebrated many successes prior to this; he was the first Irish gymnast to compete in a European final and win a European medal, and also to win a world bronze medal in 2019. He then took home a gold medal on the pommel horse at the 2019 European Championships and another gold at the 2023 World Championships. Rhys is also a Commonwealth Games champion on the pommel horse. He was named RTÉ’s Sportsperson of the Year in 2023.
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
Kin actress Yasmin Seky prepares to dazzle on the dancefloor!
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. In 2022, Yasmin was awarded the RTS Ireland Award for Best Newcomer for her role in Kin. She is currently filming a brand-new Channel 5 crime drama, The Puzzle Lady in Northern Ireland, starring Phylis Logan (Downtown Abbey). Yasmin is playing the role of Becky Baidwan.
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!”
The eleventh and final name will be revealed on Sunday morning to complete the line up for the Dancing with the Stars class of 2025. Earlier this week, Mickey Joe Harte, Irish taekwondo Olympian Jack Woolley, comedian Gearóid Farrelly, Mrs. Brown’s Boys actor Danny O’Carroll and former Miss Universe Ireland, Aishah Akorede were revealed as the first five hopefuls who will be vying for the glitterball trophy in early 2025.
The glitz, glamour, and nail-biting competition will all unfold when the new season returns to RTÉ One and RTÉ Player next month. Dancing with the Stars will be hosted by Jennifer Zamparelli and Doireann Garrihy again this season. The two-time Dancing with the Stars winner and professional dancer Karen Byrne will join the judging panel in 2025 alongside longstanding judges Loraine Barry, Brian Redmond and Arthur Gourounlian.
-ENDS-
Photography credit: Barry McCall
RTÉ Communications: Rayna Connery and Éadaoin Nic Giolla Chomhaill
Notes to Editor:
ABOUT DANCING WITH THE STARS 2025
Filling our Sunday evenings with glitz and glamour from January, the RTÉ One series sees 11 well-known figures team up with a professional dancer to perform a live routine every week. Each pairing will have a different dancing genre to master every week, from the Charleston to hip hop, and they’ll have just seven days to perfect their routine before performing live to the nation.
Each celebrity couple will be scored by an expert panel of four judges and the viewing public at home, with the winning couple claiming the much-coveted glitter ball trophy at the end of the series.
Dancing with the Stars is produced by ShinAwiL for RTÉ.
Dancing with the Stars is proudly sponsored by Hyundai.
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