DWTS RYAN I was ready to quit showbiz
Fair City actor, 26, on how he almost quit fame before receiving DWTS call
RYAN Andrews has revealed he was about to quit showbiz before landing his dream role on Dancing With The Stars.
The Fair City actor felt he was at a crossroads in his career and wanted to pack it all in before the show came calling.
The 26-year-old told the Irish Sunday Mirror: “Literally the week before I sat down and thought something needs to come in and something needs to happen.
“Fair City and the panto were there but I needed something fresh and exciting which I hadn’t had in a long time.
“It was always on the back of my mind. I am at an age where responsibilities are important.
“I have been doing showbiz my whole life and I still want to do it but I felt, ‘Will I get the opportunities now and how long could I wait?’
“I am very lucky to be doing what I am doing, people would kill for a part on Fair City or the panto.
“Then my phone rang a week later and I got asked to do Dancing With The Stars.
“The phone call re-energised me and the show has given me a complete new love for showbiz.
“I felt like I was at a crossroads and Michaela [his girlfriend] said, ‘No, keep going because this is what you love’. I was loving it but I wanted more.”
After getting his big break in RTE’S The Clinic, Ryan began playing the character of Sean Cassidy on Fair City, a role he has held for the past decade.
While he has been one of the longest serving cast members, he still has concerns producers will stop calling him.
Ryan said: “That is a fear of mine in a way but that pushes me to take every opportunity and embrace every moment.
“On Dancing With The Stars I know every week is potentially my last.”
As a dancer, Ryan is a massive fan of Strictly Come Dancing and he was shocked when the news of former winner Caroline Flack’s death emerged last weekend.
AMAZING
He added: “Caroline was amazing and her Charleston to the song Istanbul in the final was brilliant and is something I will always remember.
“We are doing what we love but there is always somebody there to pull you down.
“I haven’t had many negative comments because people can see I am being myself and am enjoying it.
“Sometimes people think they own you on a big show like this.”
However, Ryan is calling for proper regulation on social media sites.
He said: “Everyone should have to submit their passport or some other form of identification, I think it is only right.
“People think Twitter is a big discussion and it is almost built in that people go to read negative comments.”
Ryan and his pro partner Giulia Dotta will dance the contemporary ballroom to David Bowie’s Life On Mars accompandied by the RTE Concert Orchestra on RTE One at 6,30pm tonight.
He added: “Rehearsals are going really well, I put a lot of pressure on myself but hopefully we deliver.”
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