Chris McCausland joins Strictly 2024
- Blind comic Chris McCausland is joining Strictly Come Dancing
- He will compete in the 20th anniversary series later this year
Chris McCausland will compete in Strictly Come Dancing this year.
The BBC One entertainment show, currently embroiled in a series of scandals, returns in the autumn for its 20th anniversary series.
Currently half-way through the first series of his own weekly Saturday morning chat show on ITV, The Chris McCausland Show, McCausland is the first competitor announced for this year's run.
A comedian for more than 20 years, he was born with a degenerative sight condition and is now blind.
He quips: "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...!"
Reacting to the news, Vivienne Francis, RNIB Chief Social Change Officer, said: "It's brilliant to see greater representation of people with disabilities on reality shows. In 2021, Rose Ayling-Ellis starred on Strictly Come Dancing, Ron Hall and Tasha Ghouri on Love Island, and Libby Clegg on Dancing On Ice. It's a step in the right direction and it's clear the positive impact this representation can have. We hope TV series will continue to diversify their contestants and actors to challenge misconceptions of those living with a disability. Good luck, Chris!"