Laura Fox's star continues to rise as she goes from contestant to co-host on Dancing With The Stars. The Galway native and 2FM DJ sits down with Janice Butler for a chat about seizing the day, self-acceptance and her upcoming nuptials in Rome.
2026 is all go for Galway’s Laura Fox. The radio and TV broadcaster is dashing around when we meet for a chat in the RTÉ canteen. She’s just come from the RDS, where she was presenting her mid-morning radio show at the Young Scientist Exhibition.
When we finish, she’s meeting her friend, former news anchor Eileen Dunne, for the Panto. They have been friends since they appeared on Dancing with the Stars in 2024.
"She’s been a real support to me, both professionally and personally," says Laura. Speaking of Dancing With The Stars, Laura is currently filling her weekends on that glittering dancefloor, moving from contestant to co-host with Jennifer Zamparelli.
I have spoken to Laura before: the first time when she took over from Mairead Farrell as host of Ireland’s Fittest Family. The second time we met, she had just landed her own prime-time radio show on 2FM, after nine years at the station, where she worked as a reporter and stand-in for various DJs.
This time, we're chatting about her dream role on Dancing With The Stars. Has this series of successes been down to luck, hard work, manifestation or a combination of all these, I ask her?
"I’m not a big believer in manifesting. Now I know it puts people in a good mindset and on the right track, but what kills me is when people give all the credit for their hard work to the universe. No, you did this, you put the work in, and that’s why it worked out," she says passionately.
The one-time Miss Galway started her radio career in Galway Bay FM before moving to Dublin to take a punt at the national airwaves. She says dealing with rejection along the way has given her a thick skin in what can be a tough industry.
"I’m fully aware that sometimes people will say no to you, or you won’t get a gig, and I’ve just gone, OK, so what’s the workaround – there’s always a workaround – so that’s how I deal with it. I don’t let the embarrassment of not getting something hold me back. It will work out, and it will be fine," she says.
"I mean, I was trying to get a radio gig for eight years, with no sign of anything. I left Galway, where there was a possibility of getting a show with Galway Bay FM, to come to 2FM and try to make it on a national station. When I got here, there was no home for me; I was doing standby and making myself valuable, knowing that an opportunity would happen if I waited it out and kept bringing ideas to the table. And it did. Radio was all I ever wanted to do, there was no plan B," she adds.
While radio was always the plan, TV has been a bonus for Laura, with her role on Ireland’s Fittest Family firmly established and she’s kicked off 2026 with a high-profile co-hosting gig on the Sunday night extravaganza that is Dancing With The Stars. She’s at home on the studio dancefloor, having been a finalist herself in 2024. Now, the roles are reversed, and she’s the one consoling and congratulating the contestants after their performances.
"Having done the show, it’s definitely more terrifying being a contestant than having to present on it, so I think that’s kept me calm so far," she says of dealing with the nerves ahead of a live show.
Explaining how the job came her way, she describes auditioning and doing a chemistry test with Jennifer Zamparelli. "I got a call to say that Doireann Garrihy was going to be taking maternity leave and would I be able to screen test for it. I know Jen so well, she’s been such a help to me in my career. So, we did a chemistry test and read; they threw the kitchen sink at me.
"We did a full run-through as if it was a live show. I came to it in full glam; to get myself in the mindframe for it and so they could have a feel of what I would look like on the show. Then I found out I had the gig back in August, and then I had to shut up and say nothing for months," she laughs. "I’m a big believer in living in the moment and soaking it all up because you never know when it will all end."
She explains that her sense of carpe diem has come from losing loved ones in recent years, some of them suddenly. Among those was her much-loved dog Thor last year. "Not to make it morbid, but I’ve lost a lot of people close to me and all quite suddenly: my Grandad, my uncle, my good friend Alan who worked in 2FM. They all just dropped overnight. And then last year, my poor dog Thor, which was such a shock, I went to work in the morning and he was fine, and when I came home, he wasn’t," she explains with tears in her eyes.
"But these things have given me a great perspective and outlook on life because I’ve seen how quickly things can change. If you’re not enjoying things when they’re happening in front of you, you’re just never going to live life to its full potential and that’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. I feel really lucky that I have that perspective," she adds.
2026 has some big moments for Laura as well, as she’s due to head down the aisle with her fiancé Brian Moran in August in Rome. It will be a family affair with guests making the wedding into a longer holiday at the request of the bride and groom.
"Me and Brian have been really clear on that: we don’t want any alone time, we can do that in the future. I want us all to travel down the coast together. As everyone gets older, it’s harder to get that time with people, so I want to relish that," she says.
Laura is ci-opting some of her 2FM colleagues to key roles in the wedding. Emma Power is one of her bridesmaids and Tracy Clifford is going to be officiating the ceremony in Italy.
"We’ve to get legally married here in Ireland beforehand, but when we go to Italy, I just need someone to say some words and do the vows, so instead of getting some random person who I don’t know, I was like, Tracy fits the bill. She’s able to control a room, she’s well able for that and I know that she’ll be a bit of fun."
She’s always been open about her beauty regimes and often shares her tips and tricks on social media. Last year, she took to Instagram to reveal that she had undergone a cosmetic procedure to get rid of her acne scars and sun damage. She shared pics of her red swollen face, looking like a bad case of sunburn, but remarks that she’s happy to share her experiences and be honest about work she gets done.
"I’m still laughing at myself sharing on social when I blasted off my face with that CO2 treatment," she laughs. "Everyone is like 'What have you done? Your skin looks amazing’ and I’m saying no, no, I blasted off the top layer of my skin, so it would want to look good!
"People say you’re so brave to put it out there or show what you do, but I’m like, ‘I got a facial, I didn’t go to war’", she laughs. "I’m nearly honest to a fault, especially when it comes to beauty stuff. I think it’s because I’m so interested to know how someone looks really good.
"I don’t naturally look like this; I put a lot of work in to get there. I had bad acne for so many years, so I’m able to appreciate when my skin is nice or when someone pays it a compliment. I know that feeling of shrinking when you have acne. It’s really difficult, it can really have an impact on your confidence," she adds.
Is there anything she wouldn't get done?
"I never say never, but I’ve always studied my face and been critical. I don’t know if I can blame being on TV on social media for that; it’s just always how I’ve been. As long as I can remember, I’ve studied myself and over-analysed how I look. It’s not healthy, it’s not anything I think anyone should do. I wish that I wasn’t this way, but I am. The way that I deal with it is telling everyone about it," she explains.
She has spoken honestly in the past about dealing with an eating disorder in her early 20s*. She’s in a better place now, but still can find it hard mentally to battle those demons of the past.
"I would be lying if I said I don’t concentrate on my body image. However, I have such a healthier approach to it now because I’ve been in the trenches of watching everything I eat and over-exercising," she says. "I feel myself slipping sometimes, and I have to tell myself, 'You’re fine, you don’t have to punish yourself’. But it’s something I struggle with every day," she says.
Laura credits her fiancé Brian, whom she met in Galway through friends, for getting her through that difficult period in her life. The couple will be together for 11 years when they tie the knot. He’s been her rock during that time.
"He’s such a positive influence on me. He has no rules around food, he’s healthy as a horse, so it’s a really positive space to be around," she explains.
"He's so patient with me, especially when I was in the height of my eating disorder. He was there with me. I was angry and lashed out and would pick fights for no reason, but it was because I’d starved myself. So, it would have been very easy for him to be like 'I’m out’ but he stuck in there," she adds.
With good times and vibes ahead, she laughs that she’s fully booked from now until September: "If people want to meet me for a coffee, I’m available in October!"
Dancing With The Stars finishes at the end of March, she and Brian have their civil service in April, filming is scheduled to begin again on Ireland’s Fittest Family in the summer and then it will be off to Rome for the ‘I do’s’. It’s busy, but she’s grasping every moment and living life as fully as she can. "It’s an exciting year, it’s all go, but I love it and can’t wait."
