Dan O'Connor (CelebAir) Interview
Starting on Tuesday 2nd September 2008, ITV2 will be taking to the skies with the brand new show, CelebAir; with a real plane, flying to real places, staffed by real celebrities!
In this new eight-part series, 11 celebrities will take on a range of jobs on the ground and in the air to battle it out ultimately to become CelebAir’s star employee and win thousands of pounds for the charity of their choice.
Being cast as Ned Parker in Neighbours in 2005 was Dan’s first acting role and one he has taken to like a fish to water. Never one to shy away from a challenge, Dan entered himself in the 2004 Australian Idol competition. No one was more surprised than him when he found himself in the top 12, appearing on national television in the hugely successful series. He received a 2006 Logie nomination for Most Popular New Male Talent, was a finalist in Cleo’s 2006 Bachelor of the Year competition and was crowned the King of Teen at the 2007 Dolly Teen Choice Awards. Dan has recently relocated to London to further his music and acting career.
Favourite holiday destination?
Koh Samui. I stayed in an amazing hotel right on the beach.
Any holiday disasters?
Actually, the flight from Koh Samui to Bangkok was quite bad. The plane kept shuddering and then the pilot kept putting the breaks on. Everyone kept looking around thinking ‘Are we going to die?’ I have had quite a few flights where incidents have taken place. I was going down a runway once and they had to slam on the breaks and we thought that we were going to go off the edge of the runway. We had to get off for two hours, whilst the engineers took a look at the plane and I didn’t really want to get back on!
My three travel essentials?
Sunscreen, which I always forget. Boardies, because I always go to beach destinations and my iPod.
Am I a Speedos or shorts guy?
Shorts, by a mile. I don’t understand why anyone would ever wear Speedos. Even guys that have got good bodies – I don’t want to see that much information!
My favourite holiday anthem?
Love Generation by Bob Sinclar.
How am I feeling about taking part in CelebAir?
I am looking forward to dealing with real passengers and real situations.
How will I deal with awkward people?
I think if they are justified in their complaint, then I will be understanding and will try to ease the tension. If I think it is unjustified then I could loose it. I could be saying a few things back.
How am I finding the training?
Much more difficult than i thought. Not in the sense that it is terribly hard work, but there is such a vast quantity of information you have got to digest. There are constant exams. It is difficult because you are stuck in a classroom, but we have had some really good teachers and they know what it is like, as they have been through it too and they train so many people. Other than that it has been great and the group are getting on so well. No fights yet!
