Dancing with the Stars: Presenter Katja Mia joins celebrity line-up

Katja Mia joins the Dancing with the Stars line-up.

Presenter Katja Mia is the ninth celebrity to be named as a contestant for the next season of RTÉ’s Dancing with the Stars.

The African-Irish model recently took over as host of the Six O’Clock Show, alongside former Big Brother star, Brian Dowling, who also previously took part in Dancing with the Stars.

It comes after jockey Davy Russell was revealed as the eight celebrity to take to the dance floor in the new year.

Raised in Blanchardstown, Katja Mia’s parents fled war-torn Burundi to Germany before eventually settling in Ireland.

She was discovered by a modelling agency in 2020 and in 2022, she guest-hosted Virgin Media’s morning show for one week before taking up hosting duties full-time.

Speaking on her latest venture, she said she has been getting advice from previous Dancing with the Stars contestants.

“Brian (Dowling) is basically family with Dancing with the Stars at this point isn't he? He's been great for calming the nerves. I'm also good friends with Erica Cody and she was there to give me advice. Suzanne Jackson gave me her number and said to call her anytime. They've been so supportive. So you can really see there's like a Dancing with the Stars family —  a sort of sense of community here with every class,” she said.

She added that she is feeling “extremely excited” and “a bit giddy as well”.

“I've met everyone and everyone's kind of feeling the same. We're nervous. We're like, why did we agree to this? But we're also ready to just have fun. 

"I was a stage school kid growing up but I haven't done anything like Latin dancing, ballroom dancing, anything that's quite technical like that. So that's the daunting part but between that and just going out with friends and dancing in clubs — I think I've got a bit of rhythm, so I should be OK!”

So far, jockey Davy Russell, Fair City actor Shane Quigley Murphy, Ireland's Fittest Family presenter Laura Fox, former Miss World Rosanna Davison, newsreader Eileen Dunne, Wild Youth singer David Whelan, drag queen superstar Blu Hydrangea, and TikTok sensation Miriam Mullins have been named as contestants for the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars.

A total of 11 hopefuls will be vying for the glitterball trophy in early 2024, with the final two to be revealed in the coming days.

Dancing with the Stars returns to RTÉ One in January.