Des the dad dancer is throwing shapes – and shedding a couple of stone
RTÉ sports presenter Des Cahill has revealed that he’ll need a whole new wardrobe for The Sunday Game due to the amount of weight he’s lost thanks to Dancing With The Stars.
‘It’s unbelievable,’ Des said. ‘I’m eating like a horse but clearly I’m just burning it all off. I’ve lost a couple of stone.’
As he prepares to take to the dancefloor for Billy Joel’s Uptown Girl tonight, Des said: ‘I’ve had to get my pants taken in again this week for a costume.
‘My suits are all too big for me now, so I’m going to have to get some new ones for The Sunday Game if the weight stays down.’ At 63, Des is the oldest contestant and says taking part was a move beyond his comfort zone. However, the presenter has been a huge hit with viewers, something he puts down to the odd-couple dynamic he enjoys with dance partner Karen Byrne, 24.
‘She gets me,’ he said of the Latin dance champion from Ballyfermot. ‘I think this is one of the reasons I’m still in the competition: people like the fact that Karen is minding me and dragging me along.
‘I saw someone on Twitter write that “he dances like everyone’s dad”, which is a little embarrassing but a fair description.’
The broadcaster says he has been blown away by the public’s reaction and wants nothing more than for his journey on the hit show to continue. ‘I’m not ready to hang up my dancing shoes just yet,’ he laughed.
Dancing With The Stars is on RTÉ One tonight at 6.30pm. sean.dunne@mailonsunday.ie