Last night on Dancing with the Stars, Fair City actress Clelia Murphy became the seventh celebrity to be eliminated from the show after going head to head with comedian Fred Cooke in the dance-off.
Fred hit the Eurovision-themed dancefloor with an energetic samba to Micky Joe Harte’s We’ve got the world tonight with his pro-partner Giulia Dotta. The two were visibly shocked when Judge Loraine Barry made the final call to keep them in the competition, with Giulia bursting into tears.
We caught up with the comic to find out how he's coping with the highs and lows of the show. Watch the video above.
"I'm very emotionally involved with it because it's the semi-final, do you know what I mean? It's such a big thing. My first cha-cha in the first week, I scored 12 [points] and Brian [Redmond] said I might make it to the next week and now I'm in the semi-final."
When it comes to the physicality of a competition like Dancing with the Stars, Fred admits that it's been tough on his body. Last week, he picked up a knee injury that prevented him from delivering proper 'bounce' action during his salsa. Despite this, the Kells-native insists that the show has been beneficial to his health.
"I'm sleeping better, my diet is better," he confirmed.
While Guilia ensures that the funnyman's frame is well supported on the dancefloor, Fred's emotional support seems to have come from Ireland's comedy scene, with backing from past DWTS-competitors including Des Bishop, Katherine Lynch, and Deirdre O'Kane.
"These people are behind me," says Fred. "People always associate comedy as being competitive, especially stand-up - a bit bitter and backstabbing - but all I've witnessed is encouragement and love. I think, at this stage, people are a bit surprised," he laughed.
Fred has been working in comedy, both on stage and television, for over ten years and will be particularly familiar to any Republic of Telly fans. However, 2019 really does seem to be Cooke's year as this Sunday he will quickstep his way from the dance floor to the 3Arena where he will headline Paddy's Night in Aid of Comic Relief.
"I'm sharing the stage with Tommy Tiernan, Pat Shortt - incredible, so many amazing acts. Every single cent goes to homeless charities and the refugee crisis. It's a real joy."
Tickets for Paddy's Night in Aid of Comic Relief are on sale now.
Watch Dancing with the Stars every Sunday evening at 6:30pm on RTÉ One.
