Prepare the scoring paddles, put the tanning booth on standby and get ready to shimmy from the couch because DANCING WITH THE STARS is returning for its ninth season with enough razzle-dazzle to light up Ireland’s dreariest winter nights. The show that transformed Sunday evenings into glittering spectacles of sequins, spray tans and surprisingly competent pirouettes is back, and this time there’s a major shake-up at the judging table that has fans buzzing with anticipation.
Two-time STRICTLY COME DANCING champion Oti Mabuse has swept onto the panel as head judge, succeeding Loraine Barry who stepped down last September after eight years of score-holding glory. If you somehow missed Mabuse hoisting the glitterball trophy on the BBC’s flagship dance competition with celebrity partners Kelvin Fletcher and Bill Bailey in 2019 and 2020, you might have caught her dispensing verdicts on DANCING ON ICE, offering witty observations as a panellist on THE MASKED DANCER, or roughing it as a campmate on I’M A CELEBRITY…GET ME OUT OF HERE! She joins returning judges Brian Redmond, Arthur Gourounlian and Karen Byrne, creating a panel that promises equal parts technical expertise and entertainment value. Her sister Motsi Mabuse also judges on STRICTLY, making the Mabuse family something of a dance dynasty.
Behind the microphone, Laura Fox steps in to co-present alongside Jennifer Zamparelli, filling the sparkly shoes of regular co-host Doireann Garrihy who’s on maternity leave. It’s a temporary arrangement but one that keeps the show’s energy bubbling as contestants stumble through their first rehearsals and eventually glide across the floor with something approaching grace.
Since launching in 2017 as the replacement for THE VOICE OF IRELAND, DANCING WITH THE STARS has become one of RTÉ’s most reliable Sunday night draws, even while working with a fraction of the budget that bankrolls STRICTLY COME DANCING, the parent format that spawned this international television phenomenon. Produced for RTÉ by ShinAwiL as part of the broadcaster’s statutory commitment to commission content from Ireland’s independent production sector, the show has proven that you don’t need British Broadcasting Corporation money to create something genuinely beloved.
What makes DANCING WITH THE STARS more than just another reality competition is its democratic soul wrapped in rhinestones. The judges’ marks represent only half the battle, with viewers wielding equal power to determine which celebrities waltz confidently into the next week and which must foxtrot sadly home. In the final, the judges step aside entirely and the public vote alone crowns the champion, creating genuine suspense that keeps phones buzzing and group chats aflame with partisan passion. It’s simultaneously a dance competition measuring technical prowess and a popularity contest rewarding personality, creating a delicious tension between merit and likability that fuels water-cooler debates nationwide.
But perhaps most importantly for its multigenerational audience sprawled across couches from Cork to Donegal, DANCING WITH THE STARS brings a touch of sparkly, unapologetic fun to Ireland’s drab winter nights when darkness falls before the workday ends and rain seems like a permanent atmospheric condition. It’s escapism in its purest form, a weekly reminder that life doesn’t always have to be serious, that celebrities willing to make fools of themselves in pursuit of a trophy deserve our affection, and that watching someone finally nail a routine they’ve butchered for three consecutive weeks can genuinely lift the spirits. As the ninth season approaches, the formula remains intact: take some famous faces, pair them with professional dancers, add judges who know a fleckeral from a botched lift, let the public weigh in, and watch Ireland fall in love all over again with the simple magic of people learning to dance.
Killarney`s own Jessie Buckley just took home the Critics Choice Award for Best Actress for HAMNET, and her acceptance speech was pure gold 🏆✨
In HAMNET, Buckley delivers a devastating performance as Agnes, William Shakespeare`s wife, navigating the grief of losing their 11-year-old son. Critics are calling it unforgettable, and now she has the trophy to prove it 🎬💚
More Jessie at irishfilmtv.com.
HAMNET star Jessie Buckley shines in BEAST, now on #Netflix.
A troubled woman living in an isolated community finds herself pulled between the control of her oppressive family and the allure of a secretive outsider suspected of a series of brutal murders.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
🕺✨ DANCING WITH THE STARS IRELAND is back for S9 tonight!
Get ready for spray tans, sequins, and Sunday night sparkle because Ireland`s favourite winter escape is almost here. Who`s ready to vote their faves to victory? 💃
More at irishfilmtv.com.
** Now on Netflix **
RUN AWAY brings Harlan Coben back to form with James Nesbitt doing what he does best—playing a tormented father searching for his missing daughter against all advice.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Available everywhere January 1st!
The fight that divided a nation is finally on screen. SAIPAN brings the infamous 2002 World Cup showdown between Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy to life, and it`s absolutely electric. ⚡
Éanna Hardwicke is a revelation as Keane—capturing that legendary intensity, rage, and surprising humor. Steve Coogan matches him beat for beat as McCarthy. This isn`t just sports drama; it`s a masterclass in casting and a story we`re still arguing about 20+ years later.
More at irishflmtv.com.
By order of the Peaky Blinders, Merry Christmas!
A teaser for the new film PEAKY BLINDERS: THE IMMORTAL MAN just dropped, and it features Cillian Murphy’s gangster Tommy Shelby returning to his old ways despite leaving them all behind at the end of the TV series.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
Domhnall Gleeson heads to a remote Scottish isle for THE INCOMER!
He plays an awkward council worker tasked with relocating two siblings who survive by hunting seabirds, talking to mythical beings, and fiercely defending their homeland from outsiders.
More Domhnall at irishfilmtv.com.
Andrew Scott is bringing one of theater`s most powerful true stories to life.
The ALL OF US STRANGERS star will portray Scottish actor Ian Charleson in ELSINORE, chronicling Charleson`s breathtaking final performance as Hamlet at London`s National Theatre before his death in 1990 at age 40.
More via irishfilmtv.com.
Belfast-born Ciaran Hinds shines in Bradley Copper`s IS THIS THING ON?
With Hinds, you`re not just getting an actor. You`re getting decades of gravitas, warmth, and that rare ability to make every scene feel like it matters. From prestige drama to fantasy epics, he`s built a career on understated brilliance. And now? He`s ready to find the humor in heartbreak.
More Ciaran at irishfilmtv.com.
Gothic drama LIES WE TELL is now on Netflix.
With powerful performances by Agnes O`Casey and David Wilmot, the Irish drama takes Sheridan Le Fanu`s classic novel UNCLE SILAS and transforms it into something urgent and vital for our moment.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
When Colin Farrell and Jessie Buckley finally sat down together, they were strangers—but within moments, the conversation became profound.
Both Irish actors are carrying the weight of devastating roles this year: Farrell as a gambling addict spiraling in Macau in BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER, Buckley as Agnes Shakespeare grieving her son in HAMNET.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
From FAIR CITY to KNIVES OUT! Daryl McCormack shines in the new #netflix film WAKE UP DEAD MAN.
McCormack just wrapped Netflix`s PRIDE AND PREJUDICE opposite Jack Lowden, Emma Corrin, and Olivia Colman. Talk about range: trading viral grift for Jane Austen elegance. Same actor, different century, wildly different moral compass.
More Daryl at irishfilmtv.com.
Eve Hewson brings ghosts to life in Noah Baumbach`s JAY KELLY.
From her breakout in THIS MUST BE THE PLACE to BAD SISTERS and beyond, she`s now haunting George Clooney as Daphne—a face from the past that forces a movie star to confront who he became while chasing fame.
More Eve at irishfilmtv.com.
When the past catches up with you in Amsterdam 🌊
Ciarán Hinds and Lesley Manville star in MIDWINTER BREAK—a retired couple`s winter getaway becomes a reckoning with memories they`ve tried to outrun for decades, in theatres Feb 20.
New trailer at irishfilmtv.com.
James Nesbitt is back in Harlan Coben`s twisted universe. 🔍
RUN AWAY drops January 1st on #Netflix — and this one`s personal.
When Simon (Nesbitt) finally finds his missing daughter strung out in a city park, it`s supposed to be a second chance. Instead, it`s the beginning of a nightmare.
New trailer at irishfilmtv.com.
