Even though rugby player Tomás O'Leary is the second celebrity to be eliminated from the series, the jokes on Dancing with the Stars deserve to be voted off. The Munster star was one of the more skilled dancers from the get go but with a low score of 16 this week for his paso doble to Led Zeppelin's The Immigrant Song, his muscles couldn't save him or his partner Giulia Dotta.
While the celebrities are getting better on their feet each week, hosts Amanda Byram and Nicky Byrne’s gags miss a beat every time. “Some of the performances will even be in 3D. Dramatic, Daring and downright dazzling. I know. I know that was four Ds but that was because one of the Ds had a sequel,” says Byram, introducing the theme of the night – “Movie Week”.
Kitted out in a yellow jumpsuit, fitness instructor Erin McGregor is The Bride as she and her partner Ryan McShane recreate Kill Bill Volume One via the art of the Charleston. With Mammy McGregor cheering her on from the audience, the judges are careful with their words and score her 21 points.
Another star with a reputation which will save him is RTÉ GAA correspondent Marty Morrissey. Determined to show some "Clare blood" and prove that he can actually dance, the judges give him and his partner Ksenia Zsikhotska 15 in return for his American Smooth to Pretty Irish Girl from Darby O'Gill and the Little People. Although it's the lowest score for second week in a row, the voters at home are on his side.
Top of the leaderboard this week is camogie star Anna Geary and her partner Kai Widdrington. Scoring 27 points for their contemporary ballroom routine to Let it Go from Frozen, they floor the judges. "The way you combined power and beauty," says judge Brian Redmond, "should make you the perfect role model for every young woman around the country."
Continuing with the positivity and generosity, the judges dish out 26 points to comedian and actress Deirdre O'Kane and her partner John Nolan, who recreated The Artist, and to model Alannah Beirne and her partner Vitali Milova's ode to La La Land with their American Smooth.
“You have beautiful, innate qualities on the floor,” gushes judge and leader of the glitterati Julian Benson.
The award for most improved this week goes to journalist Maia Dunphy and her partner Robert Rowinski, who fully redeem themselves for their recreation of An Officer and a Gentleman.
In what should probably be a banned move, a second set of legs are used in Olympic race walker Robert Heffernan and Emily Barker's samba, where Barker's body is split in two to recreate the waiting room scene in Beetlejuice. Despite Redmond calling some of his moves a "horror show", our champion walker walks away with 20 points.
While pop star Jake Carter gives it his all with the incredible Karen Byrne by his side, overall he’s one of the more forgettable dancers this year. Even though the judges love him and give him 24 points, there’s just something missing from his routines.
"I never thought I'd be on national television with my mascara running," says 2FM presenter Bernard O'Shea, who's kitted out as Captain Jack Sparrow as he and Valeria Milova plunder the paso doble with a Pirates of the Caribbean theme. Barry says he's going from strength to strength, adding that it's "goodbye beginner, hello competitor" as O'Shea 18 points. A natural charmer and quick-witted, perhaps he could moonlight as a joke adviser for the show.
Even if the jokes continue to plummet, the average scores are higher than last year's dancers and the talent is clearly rising. While Britain's Next Top Model finalist Alannah Beirne is the top of the overall leaderboard, the dancing talent on display so far this year is impressive and the top spot is well and truly up for grabs. As long as the voters remember that.
