Dancing with the Stars head judge Oti Mabuse spoke about settling into her new role as she appeared on Friday night's Late Late Show Christmas Special, saying it has been "so scary" but "so much fun".
The talent show judge and dance champion, who replaced Loraine Barry as head judge, will be appearing in the show's upcoming ninth season alongside returning judges Brian Redmond, Arthur Gourounlian and Karen Byrne when it returns to screens on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player on 4 January.
The double Strictly Come Dancing winner said the dynamic with the other judges has been "amazing" so far.
"We've already had a dinner. Brian and I, we just like to go at it, we literally just make fun of each other," she laughed.
Host Patrick Kielty asked the South African dance star how she has been settling in to life in Ireland.
"It's very cold, I don't know how you guys do it, you are strong!", she said.
"The first thing I did, I had a Guinness. I've had some Taytos. Laura [Fox] offered them to me the first time and I said no and she looked at me with pure disgust in her face. She said, 'They're iconic!' I've had them, and I love them."
She continued: "What I've discovered is that Irish people love to get to know you."
"We're nosy dressed up as friendly," Kielty wryly observed.
"Brian was like, 'You just have to go with it, relax. You're the new person, everybody wants to know everything about you'," Mabuse continued.
"It's a lot of talking! But it's very nice, people generally are like 'Hi, welcome to Ireland, we want to get to know you.'"
When asked what type of judge she will be, and if she might go easy on contestants given her background on Strictly, she was emphatic.
"No! Shows like Dancing with the Stars - it is for the people. And the people at home are not dumb, they want what they see to be reflected. Say what you see, just be honest with it," she said.
Musician Tolü Makay, Olympic rower Philip Doyle and podcaster Amber Wilson were revealed as the latest celebrities to be joining Dancing with the Stars' class of 2026 on the Late Late.
Mabuse had some sage advice for the celebrities. "Really embrace the whole thing, you only get one chance to do it," she said.
"If you find yourself going 'I can't do it, my body can't do it' - silence those thoughts. What you think your body can't do, it will surprise you. Once you get over that 'I can't' stage, it will be the best experience ever."
The Late Late Show, Friday nights at 9.35pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.
