Rebecca Gibney is already proving that she’ll be the fan favourite to beat on the upcoming season of Dancing With The Stars.

The Packed to the Rafters star, 60, sent pulses racing on Wednesday by sharing a behind-the-scenes sneak peak at her dance training for the reality TV competition. 

‘Who would have thought I would ever get close to doing the splits again at my age,’ the New Zealand-born actress humbly captioned the candid photo. 

In the image, Rebecca appears to be practicing a tango with her dance partner Ian Waite, who holds her leg outstretched well above his hip. 

Rebecca sold the sultry emotion of the dance as she tucked her head into Ian’s embrace — with only the dancer’s arms around her lithe frame keeping the Logie Hall of Fame member aloft. 

‘Thank you Ian,’ she finished her caption.

‘YOU are a kind of magic. And I am so grateful.’ 

On Monday, Rebecca gave another shout out to her dance partner as she shared  a montage of her training sessions for the show.

Rebecca, dressed in a pair of three-quarter black leggings and loose-fitting T-shirt for training, looked to be in high spirits as she laughed at herself when she messed up a step, and grinned each time she landed a move.  

The 60-year-old freely admitted filming DTWS is ‘the most challenging thing’ she’s ever done. 

‘Will I come out of it a pro dancer? No. Has there been tears? Yes. Lots. But it’s also the most rewarding, amazing thing I’ve ever done,’ she penned in the caption. 

‘To be learning a new skill and being taught by one of the best in the world who is also such a beautiful human is an experience I will never ever forget. Thank you Ian and DTWS.

‘More shows this week. Let’s gooo.’  

The cast of Dancing With The Stars Australia for 2025 is shaping up as one of the most impressive seasons yet.   

Joining Rebecca in the fox trot for the coveted Mirrorball Trophy this year is comedian and TV veteran Shaun Micallef, Olympic boxer Harry Garside, and Bachelor alum turned radio host Brittany Hockley, athlete Susie O’Neill, and radio star Brendan Fevola’s daughter, Mia. 

‘You’re KILLING IT,’ Brittany commented on Rebecca’s post encouragingly. ‘We can cry together.’ 

‘Way ahead of you,’ Australian comedian Felicity Ward replied. ‘Aric [her dance partner] said you can smile in this bit. I said, “no I’m trying not to cry”.’ 

‘Mate why do you think I took today off! So I could have a laugh. Then went and saw Bridget Jones and cried all over again,’ Rebecca responded.  

The trio of Aussie stars have formed a close bond over the trials of trying to become professional dancers in a matter of a weeks.  

‘Meet you in the dressing room tomorrow for a sesh,’ Rebecca replied to Brittany, as she tagged Brittany and Felicity. 

Rebecca is partnered with Ian, who helped Australian actress Lisa McCune be crowned the Dancing With The Stars champion in 2024. 

The beloved actress admitted she has turned down offers of reality TV shows on many occasions and accepted DWTS after her 60th birthday. 

‘I’ve been asked a few times, and never been able to do it,’ she told Stellar magazine. 

‘And I’ve always gone, “But I wouldn’t anyway, because it’s too hard and it’s not my field.”

‘Then I found myself saying yes; the voice in my head said yes, even though the rest of me was going no.

‘I was having this inner dialogue with myself, going, “What are you doing?”

‘I realised that – particularly with turning 60, it’s apparently the third act – I want to say yes more than no. I want to do things that frighten and challenge me, and hopefully that will give me a little bit extra longevity.’

‘When you get a Logie Hall of Famer in there, you go, “Ok we’re still hitting some untapped resource.”‘

Rebecca is only the fourth woman ever inducted into the TV Week Logie Hall of Fame in 64 years, after Noni Hazlehurst, Kerri-Anne Kennerley and the late Ruth Cracknel.