BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Chris McCausland reveals 'refusal' over live performances

Chris McCausland has revealed what he refuses to have happen when he performs live on Strictly Come Dancing. The first live show of the 2024 series last weekend saw all 15 of the new Strictly couples perform together for the first time followed by the judges' comments and scores.

Comedian Chris, who has already captured viewers hearts in the live show with his quick-witted comments, was told he was "fabulous" after performing the cha cha to The Beatles classic 'Twist and Shout' with dance partner Dianne Buswell, which received 23 out of a possible 40 points from the judges.

Chris, who lost his sight at age 22 due to a hereditary condition called retinitis pigmentosa, later revealed to co-presenter Claudia Winkleman that training had not been without its difficulties. "[Dianne] kicked me in the head one day," he admitted. "I did not avoid or anticipate it. I stood there and took a foot right to the face."

READ MORE: BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Chris McCausland supported over honest 'left out' admission to Dianne Buswell

Now, Chris has spoken in his weekly column with The Telegraph, and revealed one of the things he refused to have happen when he takes to the dancefloor with Dianne each Saturday night.

"I was asked if I wanted the crowd to remain quiet for my dances so that I could better hear Dianne’s presence around me," he wrote for The Telegraph. "It was a lovely gesture, but not something I wanted to consider.

"I want to fit into the electric atmosphere of a live Strictly show and for the crowd to be entertained and not to have the atmosphere flattened to accommodate me. I would rather go out in week two having disastrously immersed myself in the show’s noisy energy than get through to week 10 in silence."

He also spoke about his first experience of Strictly live, and some unusual commentary he received. Chris explained: "We were scheduled for unlucky 13th in the running order which I thought was taking the p--s – ok not really – but it meant that I had to contain my nerves for two hours and stand on the balcony pretending to watch everybody else’s dances with only Paul Merson to commentate for me.

"'Wow Chris, he’s brilliant. Like really brilliant'. 'Ok Paul this isn’t helping'. 'Bloody hell, Chris, watching her dance is like watching Brazil, and not Brazil nowadays, proper old-school world-beating Brazil. I can’t even put into words how good she is'. 'Put a sock in it, Paul, I’d rather just listen to the songs'.

"Paul is a wind-up merchant, and I can’t believe I am so fond of a man who was part of that 1989 Arsenal team that snatched glory away from Liverpool with the last kick of a season and made this 11-year-old cry so very, very much."