It's official: Chris McCausland's doing Strictly

Blind comic confirmed as a contestant

Chris McCausland has been confirmed as a contestant in the next series of BBC One’s troubled Strictly Come Dancing.

The comedian will be the first blind celebrity to take part in the show when it returns the autumn.

The news, revealed this on ITV’s This Morning, comes as little surprise as The Sun first reported that he had signed up back in June.

McCausland said: ‘If anybody out there is thinking "How the hell is he going to do that?" then rest assured that I am thinking exactly the same thing.

‘I don't dance, I haven't danced, I can't dance, I can't see the dancing I will have to do. What can possibly go wrong? Ok don't answer that!’

The 47-year-old is the first contestant to be confirmed for the new series of the hit show, which has been rocked by allegations that the tough training regime went too far.

McCausland’s booking comes three years after actress Rose Ayling-Ellis became the show's first deaf contestant, winning the 2021 series.

The comic currently hosts his own Saturday morning chat show for ITV and has co-written and stars in Bad Tidings, a festive family comedy movie that will air on Sky this Christmas.

He has become a regular on Have I Got News For You, made the Channel 4 travel series, The Wonders of the World I Can't See, and was last year a contestant in the broadcaster’s reality series Scared Of The Dark.

The Liverpudlian – a married father of one – gradually lost his sight due to the hereditary condition retinitis pigmentosa, becoming fully blind at 22.

McCausland – who also devised his own Radio 4 series You Heard It Here First – has also welcomed disabled stars breaking through to the mainstream, without being tokenistic.

He said: ‘It’s great that there’s people coming through who are able to represent disability while also having the experience to do the job properly. There’s no point fast-tracking performers on to TV before they’re ready.

‘My attitude has always been to represent by not banging you over the head. I think the best way to represent a disability is to make people forget about it whenever possible. It’s always part of you.

‘People are interested, you let them in and laugh about it. But if you can do a show where, say, 80 per cent of it isn’t about being blind, that makes it more impactful and funnier when you do talk about it. I believe in representation within the mainstream. Integration rather than segregation.

‘Don’t have a sketch show with five disabled comedians. Take those five disabled comedians and put them in five different shows. That’s the more powerful way.'

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Published: 5 Aug 2024