Roz Purcell is among the early favourites for Dancing With The Stars!

Irish model Roz Purcell is already being backed to go all the way in the new series of Dancing With The Stars as rumours surrounding the new line-up went into overdrive this week.

Suggestions that the axe would fall on the popular talent show have come to nothing after RTÉ confirmed Jennifer Zamparelli and Doireann Garrihy will be back to oversee 11 celebrities vying for the glitterball when it returns for a seventh instalment in January.

Tipperary native Purcell is one of the celebrities heavily rumoured to be taking to the dancefloor after her appearance on the Late Late Show and she is the early favourite at 4/1 to follow 2FM DJ Carl Mullan onto the winners’ roster, although competition is expected to be fierce once more challengers for the title emerge in the coming weeks.

There may have been little to celebrate for frontman David Whelan when Wild Youth made a semi-final exit at Eurovision earlier this year, but BoyleSports has reacted to reports he has signed up for a stint on the dancefloor by making him an 8/1 shot for the glitterball.

There is also early confidence that TikTok star Tadhg Fleming will be in the running at 5/1 if rumours he has signed up are to be believed, although Eileen Dunne will have to overcome odds of 10/1 if she is to make the headlines after the retired newsreader was revealed as one of the first contenders.

Following Eileen in the betting to be the rank outsider is former Late Late Show host Ryan Tubridy at 50/1.

Having fronted the Toy Show for over a decade, Ryan certainly has the entertainment skills required to compete but it might be a stretch to see a return to Montrose so soon. 

Lawrence Lyons, spokesperson for BoyleSports said: “RTÉ may be tight-lipped on the new line-up but punters have clearly been keeping a close eye on the showbiz pages. Roz Purcell is a likely contender and it may have been closer to nul points at Eurovision for David Whelan, but the early odds say he’ll be dancing to a different tune in the New Year!” 

To Win Dancing With The Stars  

 4/1 Roz Purcell    5/1  Tadhg Fleming     8/1 David Whelan   10/1  Eileen Dunne   50/1  Ryan Tubridy