Kevin McGahern
Kevin is a comedian, writer, actor and television presenter from Cavan. After several years of doing stand-up, his career extended into television presenting fronting programmes such as Republic of Telly and Clear History. In 2017, McGahern hosted his own documentary series Kevin McGahern's America in which he explored various aspects of life in America: gun rights, intimacy in the digital age, and whether you really can choose your family.
Leah O'Rourke
From Newry in County Down, Leah played Derry Girl Jenny Joyce, the goody-two-shoes prefect who never strays from the rules. Jenny Joyce famously performed 'Stay' by Shakespeare’s Sister at the school talent show. Leah has also appeared in several short films including Wasted, Anna and Normality, and played Siobhán in the award-winning film Half Brothers. When not starring in films or comedy hits, Leah can be found tutoring the next generation in Fermanagh School of Music and Performing Arts.
Panti Bliss
Rory O'Neill aka Panti Bliss is Ireland’s best known drag artist. The Mayo native has been performing as Panti since 1998. In 2007 Rory opened Panti Bar on Capel Street in Dublin which has become one of Ireland’s most well-known gay bars. In 2015 Panti became a household name in Ireland as she spoke out and campaigned for equality in the marriage referendum. Many cite Panti’s now infamous 'Noble Call’ on The Abbey Stage as a moment that sparked debate and altered opinions. Following the marriage referendum Panti became an icon for change in Ireland and has even been spoken of as an establishment figure. In 2019 Rory married his partner Anderson Cabrera.
Carl Mullan
In 2021, Carl began hosting RTÉ's 2FM Breakfast with Doireann Garrihy and Donncha O’Callaghan, and the show has gone from strength to strength ever since. With an impressive 284K Instagram followers and 101K TikTok followers, Carl’s social media content regularly goes viral with his humorous takes on everything from Ryanair to the Irish weather. Carl came to audiences’ attention as the 'crash test dummy’ on The Nicky Byrne Show with Jenny Greene. The Dubliner is not afraid of taking on a challenge. One week he went full Magic Mike and put his dance moves on show, so he’s hoping some of that will come in useful on Dancing with the Stars.
Stephanie Roche
From Shankill in Dublin, Stephanie is one of Ireland's best known female footballers. The striker made her international debut in 2009 and has scored 14 goals over the course of her 58 appearances. Today she plays club football for Peamount United. In her first season with them, Stephanie won the Golden Boot by scoring 26 goals. Stephanie shot to fame in 2013 when her goal for Peamount against a Wexford side was runner up for the FIFA Puskas Award for best goal of the year. The footage went viral with over five million views and brought big international attention. She was the only woman to be voted a finalist that year. At the finals ceremony she rubbed shoulders with Ronaldo and Messi.
Damian McGinty
In 2011 Damian won the American reality TV show, The Glee Project, having been selected from 40,000 people to take part in the series. His talent and personality saw him land the role of Rory Flanagan in the popular television series Glee, which he played for three years. He went on to star with his Glee co-star Heather Morris, who played Brittany on the show, in the family movie Santa Fake. Damian is from Derry and calls Nashville home these days. He has been performing with Celtic Thunder since he was 14. Over the years he has performed with the group all over the world and today he is part of the legacy tour. He also performs solo and released his first EP in 2012 which went to no. 1 in Ireland and no. 3 in US iTunes. He released a new album in November 2022 called Moments.
Shane Byrne
Shane is a retired international rugby player. He got his first cap for Ireland in 2001 and went on to win a further forty caps for his country. He was part of the winning Triple Crown team in 2004 that was captained by Brian O'Driscoll. In 2005, Shane was honoured to be selected for British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand. He went on to play in the first and third tests of the series against the All Blacks.After the Lions trip he departed Irish shores and played for Saracens in England for two years. In 2009, he decided it was time to hang up his boots and try new things off the rugby pitch.
Dr Marie Cassidy
Marie was the first woman to be state pathologist in Ireland. She held this role for fourteen years from 2004 to 2018. During this time, she worked on every high-profile case in Ireland. She is also professor of Forensic Medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland and Trinity College. Since she retired Marie has authored documentaries on RTÉ including Dr Cassidy's Casebook and Cold Case Collins. She has also written a book about her career, Beyond The Tape. Born in Glasgow, her parents were from Donegal. She lives in London now and is married with two children. In recent years, Marie took up ballet, a hobby she had as a child.
Brooke Scullion
From Bellaghy in Co. Derry, Brooke represented Ireland at Eurovision in 2022 with 'That's Rich’. She co-wrote the song and travelled to Turin in Italy for the competition but was unlucky not to qualify. Brooke first came to public attention in 2020 on The Voice UK. All four coaches turned for Brooke and she made it all the way to the final. In September 2020 Brooke wrote and released her debut single ‘Attention’ and followed on with her EP, Chaotic Heart. Brooke is allergic to animal hair but is a ‘cat mom’ and has a hairless Sphynx cat, Draco.
Paul Brogan
Paul Brogan is an All-Ireland winning former Dublin GAA footballer. He is part of the Brogan GAA dynasty as the younger brother of legendary Dublin players Bernard and former senior football captain Alan. Paul was on Dublin's winning team for the 2008 O'Byrne Cup and was part of the Dublin panel that won three Leinster titles and the 2011 All-Ireland senior football championship. He left the Dublin senior football panel in October 2012. 36-year-old Paul is a larger-than-life character who admits despite not having much dance experience, he is well up for giving it a go and the worst thing that could happen is getting a few slags from his brothers and former teammates.
Suzanne Jackson
Suzanne began blogging in 2010 under SoSueMe. She wrote about all things fashion and beauty and soon found her audience growing and any product she recommended sold out instantly. By 2013 she left her day job to dedicate her time to her own business. In 2016 Suzanne made another leap and launched her own beauty range SoSu Cosmetics. It has proven to be hugely successful and grown to be worth an estimated €2.12million. In July 2022 Suzanne announced her plans to step down as CEO of the business. She presents RTÉ's The Style Counsellors, and has just finished filming the fourth series that is due to air in 2023. She lives in Malahide with her husband Dylan O’Connor.
