Dry? No – January will be full of glitz and glamour
SO 2019 has landed and with it a barrage of get fit tips, diet recipes and of course dry January. You are not anyone unless you are joining a gym, signing up for a ten kilometre run or even the dreaded half marathon.
But apart from having less money than a Somali pirate and a dad bod that would give Peter Griffin a run for his money, I am kind of looking forward to being a January couch potato. Yes, for a showbiz hack like myself, the month of January is a cornucopia of top, home-grown talent shows, all of which need to be viewed by my good self.
It will all kick off with Dancing With the Stars this Sunday on RTE One, the third incarnation of the Strictly format and I can tell you, the producers at Shinawil have got pretty good at it.
The show received an early Christmas present last year when the TV series that was due to replace them at the Film Factory in Ardmore Studios in Bray, cancelled at late notice. This meant that DWTS could return to their familiar location and start rebuilding the sets ahead of schedule.
With a new presenting duo of 2FM regulars Jennifer Zamparelli (replacing Amanda Byram) and Nicky Byrne, an interesting mix of contestants, and the return of the regular judging line-up, this third series may prove to be the best yet.
CERTAINLY the contestants this year are almost all in it to win it —the fighting talk has already begun — and judge Brian Redmond has assured us he won’t be going easy on them. So we expect plenty of tension harbouring behind those rows of pearly whites, on both sides of the judging desk.
The sequins start spinning on Sunday at 6.30pm on RTE One for a two hour opening show. And from then on in it’s glitter, sparkle and cha cha cha until Sunday March 24 with the last couple standing earning the right to raise that glitter ball trophy.
However, you can get in the mood from Friday with Can’t Stop Dancing, the preview show hosted by Blathnaid Treacy, which will give an insight into how the celebs have been getting on with training ahead of their presumably terrifying first dance. If you want a little bit of insider gossip, a senior producer told me that dress rehearsals have upped the ante from last year’s tremendous talent.
And while they must conform to the BBC bible which accompanies the format, they are planning on taking dance routines to a new level.
‘We always have to outdo the previous year,’ the source told me. ‘Obviously with the first year nobody knew what to expect.
‘Then with series two we had to keep things going and I felt that the pro-dancers really stepped it up a notch. But this year we are really going to push the boat out when it comes to the routines.
‘We are going to go for ballsier numbers with bigger production on the steps. Obviously we don’t have a live band like the BBC, but we aim to punch above our weight when it comes to costumes, make –up and choreography.
‘The celebrities realised very quickly how steep a learning curve there is and from what I have seen already they are rising to the challenge.
I think everyone is going to be impressed when they tune in on Sunday night and hopefully we can exceed their expectations.’
It hasn’t been an easy run into the show for the production team after dancer Curtis Pritchard was forced out of the contest due to injuries he received when thugs attacked him on a night out. Curtis and his Strictly Come Dancing star brother AJ were attacked by eight thugs during a night out at Nakatcha nightclub in Cheshire, England, on December 27.
This has left celebrity Holly Carpenter in a bind — and with a new dance partner — just two weeks before the live shows.
As if you need another reason to ditch the gym and hit the sofa with a nice glass of wine, eh? I, for one, will be dying to see how she gets on (I interviewed her for tomorrow’s You Magazine and for me, she is the one to watch this year).
I also can’t wait to see the chemistry between Nicky Byrne and new girl Jennifer Zamparelli. ‘They have gelled together seamlessly,’ said my source.
‘I suppose it has helped that they both work in 2FM. But from the off they are having fun and banter and it has spilled out into the show. Obviously Amanda was very glamorous and almost old Hollywood style. Jennifer brings a different spin. She is sassy but a consummate professional and I think that brings something new and fresh to the production.
‘Nicky has found himself as the experienced television lead but he has taken it in his stride. And honestly, if you didn’t know any different you would think they had been doing this together for years,’ says a series producer.
So you can keep your abs and your keto diets. I’m spending January on my couch, drinking wine, eating cheese and allowing the New Year to cha cha cha into my life. We can lose weight in February, after all, it’s a shorter month.