Jennifer Zamparelli tells Andrea Smith about hosting Dancing with the Stars and why honesty is important.

With hosting duties on top-rated TV shows and three hours of live radio every weekday, the fun and fabulous Jennifer Zamperelli is at the very top of her game.

She also has two young children to raise, so how does she manage it all - particularly during the three months each year when hosting Dancing with the Stars (DWTS) is added into the mix?

“Ah, my house is an absolute state,” Jennifer admits. “I need to go through every room and organise stuff and then I'll feel better. Putting everything on the long finger is what you do when you have a gig like that, because it's full on but great fun.”

Covid complicated the production this year with dancers, crew and even Jennifer herself having to miss the live shows due to illness, but there was a silver lining.

“It was a pain in the arse because we never knew what kind of show we'd have and who’d be missing,” says Jennifer. “In previous years, the contestants would be out at events and drinking and having a laugh, but all they were doing was rehearsing this year so the standard was incredible.”

Nina Carberry lifted the glitterball trophy, but Jen couldn't call the winner in advance because the finalists were all so good. She describes them as being “total sounders” and great fun, and feels that it really all comes down to what happens during the final.

“I think people are moved on the night as to who to vote for,” she says.

“If you look back to when Lottie Ryan won it, she was always in the bloody dance-off , God love her, but she ended up winning the thing.”

Lottie filled in for Jennifer when she had the virus and she was very proud of her 2fm pal for stepping into her shoes.

“It’s not that easy to navigate a show like that when you've never done live TV before, and she did a phenomenal job,” she says.

ON-SCREEN PARTNER

While Jennifer enjoyed the novelty of watching the show at home, she also found it “absolutely devastating” to have to sit it out. “I had a touch of FOMO,” she says. “I was slowly going mental because I was stuck in isolation with two small children and my husband was abroad for work.”

­The Dubliner has a great on-screen partnership with Nicky Byrne and admits that she was apprehensive initially when paired with the Westlife singer. ­ This was because he has performed all over the world and filled arenas, but luckily, it has worked out brilliantly.

“He’s the best boy.” she smiles. “You’d be worried going into a gig like that about whether he'd be a pain in the arse, as he has every right to have a massive ego. But for someone who's a superstar himself, there is none of that and he’s absolutely lovely and one of the easiest people to work with.”

While judges Loraine Barry and Brian Redmond were back on the panel this year, one big change was that Julian Benson was replaced by dancer and choreographer, Arthur Gourounlian, who is married to Big Brother winner Brian Dowling. While she misses Julian, who has cystic fibrosis and had to be especially mindful of his health during the pandemic, Jennifer feels that Arthur has slotted into the show very well.

“Julian is such a character, but with being so vulnerable, he had to look after himself and we understood that,” she says. “So Arthur had a really tough job coming in and had big sparkly shoes to fill, but he has been a joy. He is so buzzy and positive and enthusiastic on and off screen and he's a really good soul, so he’s been a really nice addition to the show.”

While most people would find three hours of presenting live radio daunting,Jennifer adores it and thrives on the adrenaline. Radio presenters have their listenership figures revealed and discussed every three months, and Jennifer gained 1,000 listeners in the last round of JNLRs, so her figures currently stand at an impressive 140,000. She says that while she is grateful to have a very solid listenership that is growing, it is more important to her to keep enjoying the show, put out the right content and have a happy team. Does she really never worry about the numbers?

“I don't care,” she laughs. “You’re up and down and all over the place and you’d be dead if you kept worrying about it. I think you get a serious dose of the “f**k-its” when you turn 40 and something changed in me when I hit that number. I don't stress now as whatever is meant to be will be.” “I really love live radio and I'm doing my dream job,” she adds. “I did door-to-door sales for a long time and ran a photography studio and worked very long hours. ­ This is sitting on my arse chatting to people, and it's enjoyable so I feel very fortunate.”

BUSY LIFE

2fm has had a challenging few months, with the backlash over Louise McSharry’s departure, Keith Walsh criticising the station and the 2 Johnnies being temporarily taken off air almost as soon as they started.

Jennifer feels that the station is in a good place now with very “consistent” presenters on its books, and she points out that women are well represented, with Jenny Greene, Doireann Garrihy, Tara Kumar and Tracy Clifford among those hosting shows.

“­That's something to be proud of,” she says. “It just needs to settle now and we need to get on with the gig.”

Jennifer goes to the gym at 6.30am twice or three times per week and is in RTÉ at 8am. She finishes at noon, has a chat with the crew and maybe does a pre-record, and then picks up her children, Florence (7) and Enzo (4). Even though she’s very busy, she makes sure to be around to drop them to their activities and they come first at weekends.

“It's all about saying no to things as well,” she points out. “It’s saying no to award ceremonies because you're going to Center Parcs with the kids - that kind of stuff . You learn to do that, but would I have done that years ago? Probably not.”

Jennifer says that while Florence understands a bit of what her job entails as some of her friends watch DWTS, she’s really more impressed by her dad’s job as he’s a stunt coordinator on films. And Enzo is in the RTÉ crèche so he thinks it’s his space, rather than his mum’s.

CHANGING NAMES

Jennifer adores her kids and doesn't want them to be spoiled, and it gave her great comfort when a child psychologist explained that children’s values come from the home.

“Florence is really kind and considerate like her dad, and Enzo is a little rip, so he’s more like me,” she laughs. “­ They're good kids and the most important thing to me is that they’re kind and try their best at everything. Florence is a popular kid but she doesn’t abuse it and I am always drilling that into her.

Jen met her Italian husband Lauterio in Bristol, where he’s from, when they did a play together in 2006. ­ They had a long-term relationship and then Lau moved over and they’re now seven years married. Jennifer decided to change her name from Maguire and admits that she got “a bit of stick” for it.

“Not from my family and friends because Zamparelli is a way cooler name,” she points out. “I didn't think much about it but I really wanted to have the same name as my kids. And each to their own, as everybody does what's right for them.”

Jennifer says that the secret to keeping her relationship with Lau vibrant is taking time together by themselves, and the fact that they spend time apart while he is off on set helps. “I would say that, even if we're angry, we never really have massive arguments,” she says.

“He’s so easy-going and he chills me out so we're kind of yin and yang. I think laughter is key and he’s funnier than me. He’s very sociable, so when we go on holiday, Lau is the one who would know everyone’s name at the pool and would be going around the beds chatting while I'd be hiding behind my book.”

SEX STUFF

Jennifer is from Baldoyle and while she admits to being a “bit of a nightmare” as a teenager, she is very close to her family. She is the baby of six and was a little surprise at the end as she arrived seven years after the next sibling. She actually has a nephew who is only 12 years younger.

­There are three siblings living here - Barry, Linda and Jennifer – while Cathal, Isabel and Michelle live in the US. ­ The family all went to Lanzarote together recently when restrictions lifted and had a ball.

Jen is always honest and outspoken, so do her family comment on that or are they just used to her by now?

“My dad Michael would love me to lay off the sexy stuff as he can’t cope with it,” she says. “We do a sex and relationships chat with a therapist every Wednesday so I tell him to switch off because it’s not for him.”

Jennifer is also very close to her mum Myra, who is very sociable, creative and loves travelling. “I absolutely idolise her,” she says. “It’s great to be able to live close to my parents as they’re the best and are a great support with the children.”

Jennifer turned 40 in 2019 and when asked if the milestone bothered her, she answers with refreshing honesty.

“Ah, I lost my mind,” she admits. “I didn’t know what I was doing and had a bit of a midlife crisis. I don't know why - I think it was just the number. ­ There was a lot going on because it was the April after the pandemic began, but it was nothing that a good old walk and getting out into nature couldn't sort out. I have to say that I’m very happy and relaxed now and don't resent my age. I’m happy being 42.”

When you're in the public eye, you have to deal with opinions on everything from how you look to what you wear. For example, a fabulous black dress that Jennifer wore during DWTS attracted a lot of commentary, both good and bad, but she has become much better at brushing off most of the criticism.

“I couldn't give a shit what people think about what I'm wearing as long as I feel comfortable,” she says. “If it was about my kids or my show, I’d probably be more hurt but the comments come thick and fast for everyone and no matter how much we talk about it, it doesn't stop.”

Her honesty is a really appealing characteristic and she says that when you're doing a live radio show for three hours a day, you want people to open up to you. This means discussing personal details yourself, such as the revelation that she chose to have female tubal sterilisation after having a Caesarean section with Enzo. She subsequently felt she had made such a permanent decision too “hastily.”

“I was talking about having kids with Lottie and while sometimes I forget I’m on air, it's nothing to hide,” she says. “I make really hasty decisions and think about them later, so hopefully having that conversation might make people think twice if they're going to have a procedure like that.

The show is so conversational and things are going to come out and I'm okay with that. I think people know when you’re lying or fake and they don’t relate to you or trust you.”

While she can take a breather for now, Jennifer won’t get to rest on her laurels for long as the new series of her RTÉ One quiz show, Home Advantage, begins at the end of April. It will see one team player present in the studio while their families at home are called upon at key moments to help.

“It's a lot of fun and one of those quizzes that the whole family can sit around and test their general knowledge,” she says, as our conversation draws to a close. “I’m very excited about it and can't wait for it to begin.”

Home Advantage will start on Saturday April 23 on RTÉ One.

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