Chris McCausland is set to become Strictly Come Dancing’s first blind contestant but says he took a bit of convincing to sign up.
The 47-year-old Liverpool-born comedian lost his sight completely when he was 22 due to retinitis pigmentosa, a hereditary eye disease, which causes gradual degeneration of the retina.
He will be a familar face to viewers having hosted his own show on ITV on Saturday mornings and also featured on panel shows such as Have I Got News For You, 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown and QI.
The national disability charity, Sense, has hailed McCausland's participation in the show a "pivotal moment" for disability representation.
Speaking to the Standard and other media ahead of his Strictly dancefloor debut, McCausland admitted he is going in with some trepidation.
He said: “I wasn’t keen on the idea because I’m like that with a lot of things I’m quite resistant to things and then it takes me a while to acclimatise to it, really think it through but immediately I was like nah, I can’t do that, that’s ridiculous what they on? That’s a stupid question! But I said the same thing about my ITV show that I was doing – are they mad? Can’t see the autocues, I’ll never know where the cameras are, what are they thinking. I just need to process in my mind and have a little think.”
He continued: “This is so far out of my comfort zone that it’s gonna be an experience and I can’t see, but for me it’s about if I’m able to do things that people wouldn’t think that I would be able to do and that I wouldn’t think I would be able to do, that’s represented in a positive way I think.
“It could be a disaster couldn’t it,” he added with a laugh.
Speaking about his Strictly experience so far, he said: “They are just being really flexible, it’s one of those things where I’ve never seen the show and I can’t go back and watch it and I don’t know what’s involved we’re going to just have to figure it out as we go along cos until I’m in it and experiencing it, I don’t know what’s expected of me. So they are just being really flexible, my dance partner is figuring out how to teach me and we are winging it. That’s the best way I think.”
One issue he is struggling with so far is getting used to his new dance shoes.
“I’m not used to walking in [them],” he explained. “I can’t feel the floor through the shoes properly. There are a lot of things that I think make this more complicated. If it wasn’t on live telly that would be a good thing as well!”
