Bindi Irwin a ‘ray of sunshine’ on Dancing With The Stars

BINDI Irwin was back to her bubbly self on Dancing With The Stars today.

The Sunshine Coast teen was a "ray of sunshine" in her energetic Cha Cha routine to Jess Glynne's hit song Hold My Hand.

It follows her emotional tribute to her father Steve Irwin which made headlines around the world last week.

"Regardless of who you dance with you are Bindi, and you are a ray of sunshine," judge Julianne Hough said.

As part of the ballroom dancing show's switch-up week, Irwin performed with special guest partner Val Chmerkovskiy.

Irwin put her new partner through his paces during rehearsals, bringing in a giant boa constrictor for him to pat.

"All week we've been using so many animal metaphors, so I had to give you a glimpse into my world," Irwin said.

The pair earned a score of 37 out of 40 from the judging panel, including a perfect 10 from guest judge Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Val's older brother).

Maksim said it was the best dance of the night, while Italian judge Bruno Tonioli said Irwin lifted his spirit "like a bright summer day".

Next week the show's remaining celebrity dancers will return to their original partners and take on famous dance routines.