Tristan's got Knight fever
Divas are usually known for their strops but apparently Gladys Knight is the exception.
We hear (through the grapevine, where else?) that the Bray-born dancer Tristan MacManus is busy tapping toes with the singer on the lastest American season of Dancing With the Stars, which kicks off tomorrow.
MacManus, who moved to America three years ago, has been wowed by the Empress of Soul. "Getting paired with Gladys was unreal," he told Backchat. "She's really cool and down to earth. It's nice to see someone who has been in the entertainment industry for so long and is still humble, and still loves what she does."
The dancer is quite a hit on the ABC show but is shunning the celebrity LA lifestyle. "It's a glamorous place but pretentious," he said. "It's up to you how you want to spend your time here, whether it's having your own friends or getting in the gossip columns and magazines."
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Er, you've just made your debut in the gossip columns, Tristan.
Skehan bites into Big Apple
Donal Skehan, RTE's young foodie, was cooking up a storm in New York last Friday with a guest slot on Good Morning America.
Skehan got an email "out of the blue" on Wednesday to appear on the show. "In a situation like that, you just have to go for it," he told Backchat after his whirlwind 24-hour trip. "We had thought about going to the States but certainly hadn't planned on anything so soon."
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It's not just the Americans who are keen to get a slice of the Dubliner.
"The book [Good Mood Food] has been sold to Sweden and Germany and the TV show has been bought in Brazil, France and the UK," he tells me.
Not that he's getting carried away. Unlike other telly cooks, Skehan says he has no plans to launch his own eaterie. "I'm not a chef and nor do I want to be. If I did, though, I'd love to have a funky relaxed cafe with down-to-earth food." All right, so it's not quite a no.
Maria gets that sinking feeling
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Maria Doyle Kennedy is breaking out her corset again: she's starring in another period drama.
Fresh from The Tudors and Downton Abbey, the actress and singer is setting sail in ITV's €12m Titanic mini-series, which starts next Sunday.
Filming took place in Europe's largest water tank in Budapest, where Maria discovered full period dress doesn't make for a good swimsuit. "I was wearing these Edwardian clothes and when I got out I could barely walk," she said.
The experience gave her an insight into what the passengers must have undergone 100 years ago. "I only had the usual general knowledge about the Titanic story before I came out there," she said.
"Then I got quite spooked about it. I looked down the deck and it was incredibly vivid. So I started to learn much more about it then and to think about it more."
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Doyle Kennedy, who plays a scheming wife in Downton, hopes she wouldn't have been such a bitch as that character if she'd been on the Titanic.
"If you're one of those on a lifeboat pulling away and somebody says, 'There are others. We've got to go back and get them,' I'd like to think I would."
Eamon slips a disc off the pitch
Dublin footballer Eamon Fennell is keen to ditch his "party boy" image and let his football do the talking. "I can't control what people say, so I can't let it affect me," he told Backchat. "As long as the lads on the team know I'm not drinking and I'm getting the adequate sleep I need."
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Eamon launched the Easter Dublin GAA camps with the help of team-mate Bernard Brogan last week. They're aimed at players aged 4 to 13. But how does the 27-year-old's new residency DJing at Dublin hot spot the Grafton Lounge fit in with his squeaky-clean image as a pro footballer? "I am a footballer first, and everything else has to come after that," he said. "Saying that, you still have to earn a living."
I also shared a cupla focail with former world boxing champion Bernard Dunne last week about his new-found gra for the Irish language and his burgeoning TV career. Dunne was boxing clever when asked whether TG4 had approached him to front any of their Irish-language shows. "Right now I'm too busy with my RTE show," he said.
The Bród Club presenter is predicting great things for the Irish at the 2012 Olympics. "We've three boxers through already, and I'd say we'll have six or seven in all." But he insisted there will be no ringside nostalgia when he covers the fights for RTE. "I'm no longer a boxer, I've accepted that."
Kelly's body politic
Kelly Donegan versus David Norris: it's on. The star of Tallafornia said last week it was "ludicrous" that the senator had branded the show "repulsive" and "obnoxious".
Norris also told the Seanad that Tallafornia was "exploiting the young people of Ireland". "It's crazy to make that kind of accusation," Kelly told Backchat. "We are adults and have not regretted doing the show. Get back in the Seanad and debate on more important matters."
The first season of the show ended on Friday but the model is confident a second instalment is on the cards. "Rumour has it that it will be in a sunny destination, so I'm working hard on my beach body." Senator Norris will be thrilled.