Dancing with the Stars hopeful Philip Doyle has told RTÉ Entertainment that he and his professional dance partner Daniela Roze reached a crossroads at the start of their training - she was being too nice to him.
The Olympic medal-winning rower and Roze have formed a formidable partnership on the RTÉ One show and are looking to score in the 30s when they dance an American Smooth to Rhinestone Cowboy on Country Week this Sunday.
When Doyle was asked by RTÉ Entertainment if Roze has proven to be one of the hardest taskmasters that he has encountered, the Co Down man laughed as he remembered the start of his training with Roze.
"When we first met, she was too nice!" he said.
"I said to her, 'This isn't going to work. You're too complimentary! I will just think I'm great and then not take on much of what you're saying if you just keep telling me how great I am all the time!'"
"On the first day, we had got to a stage where she was like, 'It took me nearly a week to get here before (with Roze's 2025 DWTS dance partner, singer-songwriter Mickey Joe Harte)!'" Doyle continued.
"She was like, 'Oh, you're doing great!' I was like, 'Let's not just... we haven't learned the dance yet! Let's just take it easy!'
Watch: Philip Doyle and Daniela Roze dance the Salsa to Pitbull's We Are One
"So, I think she's enjoying my work ethic. I'm enjoying the fact that she's now being a wee bit more strict, because if I get positive feedback, I just think, 'Ach, brilliant, I've got it! I can go and train for an extra hour today and forget about the dancing!' Whereas if she keeps me on not the negative side, but if she keeps me on the dark side a little bit more, then I'll push to impress her over the days.
"She's good. She knows when to pull back; she knows when to push on. We've learned how we work over the last few days - a good bit of messing, a good bit of slagging, a few giggles, a few jokes."
"We try and get serious around the lifts - just in case I need to catch her!" Doyle stressed.
"Apart from that, yeah, we're just having a ball, genuinely. We went axe-throwing the other night! [I] Absolutely wiped her on it! She's not terribly good at the rowing or the axe-throwing, but she's very good at the old dancing!
"She's the boss in the dance studio, but any opportunity I get to take her out of the dance studio, I absolutely flourish because it's something I can be more comfortable at - and she's not the expert anymore!"
When asked what he thinks Roze has found most impressive about him, Doyle replied: "I think what has impressed her most about me is the lifts. She's a classically trained dancer, so they don't do any lifts in the world championships classically.
"I think this season is one of the first seasons she's ever done lifts. She didn't work cruise ships; she didn't work big shows. She's very, like, [a] classically trained competition dancer. I think she was surprised. She's very light! She's very able to control her body. So, I'm delighted because I can just throw her up and spin her round! The ease of it is great!
"I think she's always a bit shocked at how easily it's done, but I keep reminding her there's 15/16 years of strength training in me - the same as the dance training's in her, so I can relate to that."
When asked what has impressed him most about Roze, Doyle immediately said: "Her work ethic."
"We don't really understand outside of it that all these different dances, all these different styles - Ballroom, Latin, American Smooth, Cha-Cha, Viennese Waltz - she has them all in her body, all the steps, all the types of steps, all the rhythm. They choreograph every dance," he explained.
"I might be there 20 hours a week, but in between that she's working with the choreographers, the producers, sending videos, getting approvals, sorting out music, doing extra pro dances for the weekend numbers, meeting up and helping other pros, choreographing in the evening, travelling into training. She's always there before me, she's always there after me.
"The work ethic is huge. I'd say while I'm training on the rowing machine, she's probably putting in those hours just on the dancing alone.
"Her work ethic and her mentality, it's always positive. It's always friendly and bubbly. She does tell me from time to time, 'I'm paid to be nice to you!' - but I don't believe it! I think there's a genuine connection and her work ethic is just shining through."
Dancing with the Stars, Sundays, RTÉ One and RTÉ Player, 6:30pm
