Matthew on pressure in Dancing With The Stars

Matthew on pressure in Dancing With The Stars

16 March 2022

FROM Downpatrick to Rio De Janeiro, Love Island star Matthew MacNabb has tangoed his way into the semi-final of RTÉ’s Dancing With The Stars.

The 27 year-old will be flying the flag for Downpatrick and Northern Ireland on Sunday when he vies to get through to the final.

It was a busy night for Matthew and his dance partner Laura Nolan, with two dances each to complete before the dance-off at the end of the show.

They danced a sultry tango to Rio by Duran Duran with judge Arthur Gourounlian commenting after: “Matthew, you brought the passion of Rio to the dance floor tonight.”

Fellow judge Brian Redmond said: “You started with intensity, commitment to the movement... it's just the face that's missing at this stage, your body brought us on the journey.”

Loraine Barry, another judge, said: “I like this Matthew, I felt you got yourself in the correct tango position.”

They scored 23 from the judges but they picked up extra points in the team dance for their group,Turkish Delights, were victorious.

These points, combined with the public, kept Matthew safe from the dance-off. 

Nicolas Roche became the latest celebrity to exit as he and dance partner Karen Byrne lost out in this week's dance-off against Ellen Keane and Ervinas Merfeldas.

Matthew remained coy over rumours of romance between him and his pro-dance partner Laura, “I haven't got a clue about what everyone is on about.”

However, everyone -— including the DWTS judges — have noticed a certain spark between him and Laura.

“We’ve really grown close,” admitted Matthew. “I think with dancing, when you’re in this process, it’s so intense and you’re in each other’s pockets for seven days a week and you become emotionally reliant on the person and vice versa.

“It really is so intense and there is a lot of pressure because you’ve got the whole nation watching you and you’ve got the producers and your fellow contestants watching and you don’t want to let the down, you don’t want to let your family down.”

He added: “Especially you don’t want to let yourself and your partner down because you’ve put in all the work, we put in ridiculous work every day. I haven’t taken a day off in ten weeks.”

Matthew revealed he has met Laura’s parents and that he was planning what he called “a two-person trip” once the show comes to an end.

When asked if he ever expected to get to the quarter-final of the show, he said, "It’s amazing to get this far. I had no expectation coming into it.

"I was never a performer, never danced in my life so it was a whole new world. Going into the show I’m 6’ 6" so I never expected myself to be a good dancer, I’m not saying I’m a good dancer now but I’ve definitely improved leaps and bounds since I started.

“I’m really buzzing at how far I’ve progressed and hopefully I’ll keep that going and improve further from here.”

He said that he has found the physical demands of dance quite challenging and that his body is breaking down now.

“It’s constant because you’re twisting your body in new ways. I’ve definitely got an emotional connection and it’s something I’ll keep up after the show is over,” added Matthew.

Check out Matthew’s progress on Dancing with the Stars this Sunday at 6.30pm on RTÉ One.