After decades of watching Eileen Dunne reading the news, as inscrutable and immovable as a sphinx, it’s hard to imagine her gliding across a shiny floor in sequins. But unlikely contestants have always been part of the thrill of celebrity dancing shows, and Dunne, who recently retired from the RTÉ newsroom, was always a fan of Strictly Come Dancing. She had also watched her friends, Mary Kennedy and Aengus Mac Grianna, acquit themselves well on our own version, Dancing with the Stars. And so, when the offer came in to take part, she thought, ‘Why not?’