Brian Redmond has revealed which contestant is surprising him the most on this season of Dancing with the Stars and why he chose Mark McCabe's legendary dance anthem Maniac 2000 as his wedding song.
"My wife has a bit of a dancing background," Redmond explained ahead of tonight's show. "But she said to me a month in advance of the wedding, 'Dancing is the last thing I want to be doing in a room that’s half full of dancing professionals’… so we went for Maniac and it was played three times!"
The long-time Dancing with the Stars judge, known for his no-nonsense scoring, also addressed the controversy surrounding his decision not to award Rhys McClenaghan a perfect 10 last week - like all the other judges.
"In my opinion, Rhys is good, but it definitely wasn’t perfect – and that’s what a score of 10 should be. It’s basically us saying, ‘That’s absolutely perfect,’ and that’s difficult to achieve. It doesn’t happen that often, and historically from my scoring padel, it might only happen four or five times a season."
Redmond, who has been with the show since its first season, also reflected on his toughest critics - his own children, Alex (15) and Anna (10). "The biggest bit of criticism I get is at home. Although Anna probably spends more time trying to replicate the dance routines than caring what I have to say. When Marty Morrissey got kicked off the show, she wasn’t one bit happy!"
Discussing this year’s contestants, Redmond said Kevin Dundon is someone who has really connected with the Irish public.
"The interesting thing is that with all the contestants on the show, I get more people talking to me about Kevin than anybody else. He’s been great craic to be around, and I have to say the little bit of a Waltz he did last weekend was much better than I ever thought we’d see from him."
He also noted Danny O’Carroll’s improvement as one of the biggest surprises of the season. "At the start, I thought, ‘Oh, he’s pretty good, he’s got the entertainment value and the banter,’ but now I think Jack and Rhys might be looking over their shoulders."
Redmond praised the impact of Dancing with the Stars beyond the glitz and glamour, saying he sees it as a privilege to be part of a show that resonates deeply with viewers. "When you hear people, like Panti a couple of years ago or Gearóid this year, getting messages from young people who have come out to their parents - they can see their struggles on TV.
"People might think it’s just a shiny floor entertainment show, and it is, but the media landscape needs to be conscious of its role. We can't go on and have fun and entertainment but belittle people as a result of it. If we can go on and have fun and entertainment and lift people up at the same time, then that is good entertainment."
And in case anyone was wondering what the biggest perk of having Karen Byrne as an extra judge on the panel is? "It means I only have to bring doughnuts every fourth Sunday now instead of every third - that’s a big benefit!"
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