Dancing with the Stars (Irish TV series)
Dancing with the Stars is an Irish reality television series, airing on RTÉ One that started on 8 January 2017,[1] and is hosted by Nicky Byrne and Jennifer Zamparelli.[2] The show is based on the original UK version, Strictly Come Dancing and is part of the Dancing with the Stars franchise.[3] The judging panel consists of Julian Benson, Loraine Barry and Brian Redmond.[4][5]
| Dancing with the Stars | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Reality competition |
| Created by | Fenia Vardanis Richard Hopkins Karen Smith |
| Presented by | Amanda Byram Nicky Byrne Jennifer Zamparelli |
| Judges | Julian Benson Loraine Barry Brian Redmond Darren Bennett (stand-in judge) |
| Voices of | Jack Boylan |
| Country of origin | Ireland |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 47 (as of 15 March 2020) |
| Production | |
| Production location(s) | Ardmore Studios |
| Running time | 120 minutes (inc. adverts) |
| Production company(s) | ShinAwil |
| Release | |
| Original network | RTÉ One |
| Picture format | 720p (HDTV) |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release | 8 January 2017 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Strictly Come Dancing Dancing with the Stars (franchise) |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Production
In August 2016, it was confirmed that RTÉ One would broadcast an Irish version of Dancing with the Stars, which would replace the successful The Voice of Ireland, which was cancelled in order for the broadcaster to order the new show.[6] A producer of the show commented, "We've got fantastic production people in Ireland who, I believe, deliver a show that's comparable with any of those shows on a fraction of the budget. So we're looking forward to the task of doing this equally the same way."[6]
It became quickly apparent that the television studios at RTE Television Centre in Dublin were too small for the large scale production of Dancing with the Stars would require, with the largest television studio at RTE Studio 4 at 6,525 sq ft (606.2 m2) would be too small and so the production have had to be based in Ardmore Studios located in County Wicklow, whose largest studio is 15,000 sq ft (1,400 m2).[7]
Format
The format of the series follows celebrities being paired up with professional dancers, who perform predetermined dances each week for judges' scores and public votes, with the couple with the lowest number of points being eliminated, until the winning couple remains.[3]
Judges and hosts
On 18 December 2016, RTÉ confirmed that Julian Benson, Loraine Barry and Brian Redmond would be the judges on the programme.[4][5] Creative producer Darren Bennett stood in for Benson, during week five, six, seven and eight, who was absent due to illness.
People in the running to be host of the show included former Westlife musician and 2012 Strictly Come Dancing contestant Nicky Byrne; as well as popular radio host Ray D'Arcy, though D'Arcy ruled himself out of the running in August 2016.[6] In October 2016, it was reported that Marty Whelan had auditioned to host the show. In November, it was reported that Amanda Byram had been selected as one of the hosts.[2][8] In December, it was confirmed that Byrne would host alongside Byram.[9] It was also confirmed that Bláthnaid Treacy would be hosting RTÉ Two spin-off show, Can't Stop Dancing, airing on Friday nights before the live shows.[10]
On 28 August 2018, after two series, Amanda Byram confirmed that she would not be returning as a presenter in 2019.[11] On 30 October 2018, Jennifer Zamparelli was confirmed as Byram's replacement.[12]
Professional dancers and their partners
Key:
- Winner of the series
- Finalist (2nd/3rd/4th place)
- First elimination of the series
- Withdrew from the series
- Participating in current series
- Week 7 of Series 1 and Week 6 of Series 2, 3 and 4 was 'Switch-Up Week' in which the celebrities danced with different pros for one week only. The table above reflects this as it excludes each pro's regular celebrity partner's Switch-Up Week score and includes their Switch-Up Week partner's score.
- Series 4 ended a week early due to the COVID-19 pandemic; therefore, there were four competitors in the final instead of three.
Overall Highest and lowest scoring performances
The best and worst performances over each series in each dance according to the judges' scale are as follows. Team Dances and Marathons are not on this list.
Ranking of couples
Series overview
| Series | Premiere date | Finale date | Number of couples |
Number of weeks |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 January 2017 | 26 March 2017 | 11 | 12 | Aidan O'Mahony & Valeria Milova | Aoibhín Garrihy & Vitali Kozmin Denise McCormack & Ryan McShane |
| 2 | 7 January 2018 | 25 March 2018 | Jake Carter & Karen Byrne | Anna Geary & Kai Widdrington Deirdre O'Kane & John Nolan | ||
| 3 | 6 January 2019 | 24 March 2019 | Mairéad Ronan & John Nolan | Johnny Ward & Emily Barker Cliona Hagan & Robert Rowiński | ||
| 4 | 5 January 2020 | 15 March 2020 | 11 | Lottie Ryan & Pasquale La Rocca | Aidan Fogarty & Emily Barker Gráinne Gallanagh & Kai Widdrington Ryan Andrews & Giulia Dotta | |
Episodes
Series 1 (2017)
The first series of Dancing with the Stars started on 8 January 2017 and finished on 26 March 2017.
Series 3 (2019)
The third series began on 6 January 2019 and finished on 24 March 2019.
Series 4 (2020)
The fourth series began on 5 January 2020 and finished on 15 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[15]
Live tour
On 19 August 2019 it was announced that live shows would take place in The INEC in Killarney on 1 and 2 November 2019.[16]
The line-up included;
- Mairéad Ronan & John Nolan, Series 3 champions
- Johnny Ward & Emily Barker, Series 3 runners-up
- Cliona Hagan & Robert Rowiński, Series 3 runners-up
- Jake Carter & Karen Byrne, Series 2 champions
- Thalia Heffernan & Ryan McShane, Series 1
References
- Curran, Sarah (21 October 2016). "Marty Whelan Auditions to Host Dancing with the Stars!". RSVP Magazine. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
- Entertainment.ie (18 November 2016). "Irish 'Dancing with the Stars' have reportedly chosen their host".
- "Dancing with the Stars to take centre stage on RTÉ One". RTÉ.
- O'Donnell, Áine (18 December 2016). "The judges for Dancing With The Stars have been REVEALED - Goss". goss.ie. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- RTE One [@RTEOne] (18 December 2016). "// Meet the Judges // We can finally introduce you to our #DWTSIrl judges - Julian Benson, Brian Redmond & Loraine…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- "RTÉ drops The Voice for Dancing with the Stars". RTÉ News. RTÉ. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
- "Ardmore Studios | Sound Stages". ardmore-studios.
- "The host of RTE's Dancing with the Stars has been CONFIRMED". 18 November 2016.
- "Byram, Byrne 'so excited' to host Irish Dancing with the Stars". RTÉ. 7 December 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- "Nicky Byrne and Amanda Byram confirm they're hosting Dancing With The Stars". Irish Independent. 6 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
- "Amanda Byram".
- "Dancing with the Stars line-up a mystery for new host". RTÉ News. 30 October 2018.
- "Dancing with the Stars cha chas to second series". RTÉ. 16 June 2017.
- "Deirdre O'Kane to waltz her way onto DWTS in January". RTÉ. 3 December 2017.
- "Break out the sequins!!!! We have exciting news for Dancing with the Stars fans". Extra.ie. 31 May 2019.
- "Dancing with the Stars Live set for INEC in Killarney". 19 August 2019 – via www.rte.ie. Cite journal requires
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