Dancing with the Stars: Jockey Davy Russell latest celebrity contestant to be named

Davy Russell will take part in the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars

Jockey Davy Russell is the latest celebrity contestant to be named for the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars, which will air on RTÉ in the new year.

The Grand National-winning and Cheltenham Cup-winning jockey joins Fair City actor Shane Quigley Murphy in the line-up for Dancing with the Stars.

With high-profile victories, including the Gold Cup in 2014 on Lord Windermere and an impressive three wins in the Coral Cup, Russell's outstanding performances earned him the leading jockey award at Cheltenham in 2018. Now, he has his eyes set on the glitterball trophy.

“It's exciting. And it's so very different to what I'm used to, it's a new venture,” he says of Dancing with the Stars.

“It’s really hard to keep it a secret from friends and family, I have itchy fingers and I'm ready to pull the trigger. My wife always told me we need to get dancing lessons before our wedding. I said no, and now I'm regretting this decision.” 

He is the eighth celebrity dancer to be announced for the upcoming season of the show. On Friday night’s Late Late Show, former Miss World Rosanna Davison, newsreader Eileen Dunne, Wild Youth singer David Whelan, drag queen superstar Blu Hydrangea, and TikTok sensation Miriam Mullins were revealed as five of the 11 contestants taking to the dance floor in the new year.

Ireland's Fittest Family presenter Laura Fox was announced on Sunday and Fair City actor Shane Quigley Murphy was announced on Monday. Three more names are still to be revealed this week to complete the line-up.

• Dancing with the Stars returns to RTÉ One in January 2024.