Queen of Ireland Panti Bliss has been unveiled as one of the celebrities for this year’s Dancing with the Stars. Her participation in the RTÉ production will make history, as she will be the first-ever drag artist to compete in the Irish version of the show.
Rumours began circulating on the morning of Monday, November 7 regarding the infamous queen’s involvement, but in true Panti fashion, she remained tight-lipped on the matter, teasing her Twitter followers by simply writing, “No comment at this time”.
“No comment at this time” https://t.co/MNluqns5Zg
— Dr Panti Bliss-Cabrera (@PantiBliss) November 7, 2022
According to reports, she will be partnered with a male professional, and because Rory O’Neill is the mind behind the iconic persona, it will technically make them the first all-male pairing to team up for the full duration of the programme. In 2020, Big Brother’s Brian Dowling danced with Kai Widdrington during so-called ‘Swap Week’, and this is another significant step forward for the competition.
Alongside Panti, Eurovision entrant Brooke Scullion has also been revealed to be taking part in the new series of Dancing with the Stars. The 23 year-old Derry-woman won the hearts of the nation with her song ‘That’s Rich’, which she performed in the semi-finals of the contest earlier this year. Fans were enraged when the singer failed to qualify for the finals in Italy, with many feeling she was “robbed”.
Rumoured to be joining the two queer icons on the show is Fair City’s Seamus Power, weather woman Nuala Carey, ex-GAA stars Philly McMahon and Keiran Donaghy, and radio DJs Tracy Clifford and Laura Fox. Dancing with the Stars is set to return to Irish screens in January 2023, broadcasting every Sunday evening on RTÉ One.
The news of Panti’s involvement comes ahead of the premiere of her brand-new one-woman stage show, If These Wigs Could Talk. The production deals with the subject of being an ageing drag queen, and is set to play as a double-bill alongside Tara Flynn’s Haunted, at the Abbey Theatre’s Peacock stage from November 11 to December 3.
I have a new show coming to the Peacock Theatre (the NATIONAL Darling!) in November and you should come. Tara Flynn has a new show too! You should go to her's too.
You could go to one, or the other, OR snap up a bargain ticket for a FABULOUS double bill!https://t.co/LpepFTzYGq pic.twitter.com/TFeJNOW470— Dr Panti Bliss-Cabrera (@PantiBliss) September 21, 2022
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