Maïa Dunphy

Dunphy has written and produced for many comedy shows for RTÉ including Podge & Rodge and Katherine Lynch's Wagon's Den and books such as The Ballydung Bible, and has worked with Dustin the Turkey and Zig and Zag. She has written regular columns for The Dubliner magazine, The Irish Times, Image Magazine, the Irish Independent Insider Magazine and the Evening Herald amongst others.

Dunphy wrote the Mr. Tayto spoof autobiography The Man in the Jacket in 2009 which famously kept former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern off the Christmas No.1 spot in the book charts. She was a contributor on the RTÉ 2fm Ryan Tubridy Show and has also sat in for Colm Hayes. Her first book penned under her own name was published in November 2017. The M Word is a book for women who happen to be mothers and was nominated for best non-fiction popular book of the year at the Irish Book Awards.[2]

In January 2012, Dunphy wrote and hosted a documentary on the Irish baby boom for RTÉ as part of the Reality Bites series. She also began appearing as a regular panelist on the Craig Doyle Live show. Her second documentary Merlot & Me aired on RTÉ in January 2013 to critical acclaim.

In September 2013, a four-part documentary series Maia Dunphy's What Women Want began on RTÉ. The series covered four female centric topics: the pressure on women to stay looking young and the lengths some go to in 'Forever Young'; how women really feel about sex and the importance of female sexuality in 'Best Sex Ever'; the increasing problem of anxiety and benzodiazepine use in 'Calm'; and how many Irish women are breaking away from the traditional ideals of relationships and family in 'Happily Ever After'. The series was well received.

The second series was broadcast on RTÉ2 in November and December 2014 and looked at food fads in "Food Not Fear"; the love of shopping, from designer bags to the buzz of a bargain in "Retail Therapy"; how perceptions of beauty have become skewed in "The Secrets of Attraction"; and the ongoing cult of celebrity in "Fame".

In October 2015 a new series Maïa Dunphy's Truth About.... aired on RTÉ2. In December 2014, Dunphy won the Irish Tatler Woman of the Year award for Entertainment. In August 2013, she was a finalist on Celebrity MasterChef: Ireland.[3][4]

Dunphy is a well-known face on many Irish shows.

On 18 June 2014, Dunphy and her husband Johnny Vegas took part in an episode of All Star Mr & Mrs.[5] They won the episode and the jackpot of 30,000 for their chosen charity.[6]

She took part in the second series of Dancing with the Stars on RTÉ One and was eliminated in week 5. She was partnered with new dancer, Polish champion Robert Rowiński.