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Strictly Come DancingChris McCausland has already become an audience favorite after leaving them in stitches during Saturday night’s opening performance.
The BBC dance show is back on screens to celebrate its 20th anniversary, and a fresh cast of 15 celebrities took to the dance floor for a pre-recorded performance.
McCausland, who has appeared on panel shows including Do I have news for you?and Am I lying to you?during the show, he won the fans with his witty humor.
As hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman interviewed this year’s cast, McCausland chimed in and pointed to fellow contestant, TV personality Dr Poonam Krishan: ‘Can I just say that none of us can believe we’re in the same room with The GP is in!”
At one point he told the hosts: “I might be joking now, I’ve only been here for three weeks.”
McCausland, the show’s first blind contestant, lost her sight at the age of 22 due to a genetic disease called retinitis pigmentosa.
She told the judges that because of her condition, she was “not sure” what to expect from the show.
Fans were quick to declare McCausland the “best part” of this year’s series, with one viewer writing online: “I think we can all agree that @chrismccausland is already a highlight of this year’s #Strictly!”
Another added that it was a “stroke of genius” by the BBC to get the comedian to compete on the show.
“Just give the glitterball to Chris McCausland NOW,” said another on X/Twitter. “What a cheerleader.”
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Another added: “Everyone else can step aside, Chris McCausland is already the hero of this show. What an absolute gem and star!”
Speech to The Independent and other media before the show began, McCausland admitted that she and her dance partner were “winging it” because she had never seen the show and her professional partner Diane Buswell had never taught anyone who was blind. .
“We’ll just have to figure it out as we go,” he said. “The production team is really flexible. My dance partner knows how to teach me. And we hit it off. That’s the best way I think.”
Then he joked, “There are a lot of things that make it more difficult,” he laughed. “If it wasn’t on live TV, that would be a good thing too!”
McCausland also hosts the ITV morning series Featuring Chris McCauslandand is known to younger viewers as Rudy, the market trader, in the CBeebies show Me too!
Discussing his motivations behind joining the show, he said that working in a band is a nice change from his stand-up work, which can be very “lonely”.
She admitted she was reluctant to sign up at first, mainly because she thought it was a “stupid” idea, but changed her mind.
“I wasn’t keen on the idea at first,” he said. “Immediately I was like, ‘No, I can’t do that … this is ridiculous.’ That’s a stupid question!’ I’m very resistant to things and then it takes time to adjust to it and really think about it. But then I just have to process these things. “
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