Chris McCausland ‘really proud’ of BBC Strictly Samba-thon despite fans branding segment ‘discriminatory and unfair’
Strictly Come Dancing contestant Chris McCausland has found himself at the centre of controversy after being placed last in Saturday night’s Samba-thon group dance.
The blind comedian and his partner Dianne Buswell were the first couple to be sent off the dancefloor during the segment, which involved all seven couples dancing simultaneously.
The decision sparked outrage among viewers who branded the challenge “discriminatory” and “unfair”, given McCausland’s inability to be spatially aware of other dancers on the floor.
The Samba-thon, making its first return since 2018, awarded the pair just one point, placing them near the bottom of the judges’ scoreboard.
Critics pointed out that McCausland was unable to perform many moves as he needed to stay connected to his partner Dianne.
Sharing their outrage on X, one wrote: “I find it shocking they chose this year to bring back the Samba-thon when Chris cannot see any of the other couples/be spatially aware of other couples. Like of course he’s gonna get voted off first? Not in good taste in my opinion.”
A second added: “I’m sorry but the Samba-thon was very discriminatory against Chris, he had no perception of where the others were and he wasn’t able to do half the moves the other couples were doing because he had to be connected to Dianne, very poor from.”
“Had it been an annual thing, that’s one thing… but they chose to bring it back!!! It was deliberate! Selected! Put in place! With a BLIND and very popular contestant! MAD!!!” another hit out.
A third added: “Could have had money on Chris being the 1st out. Wholly unfair. The way he cheered for the 1 point, I think was his way of saying f you.”
Another slammed: “To be honest it was a bit of a joke as far as Chris was concerned, and it obviously didn’t bother him. He’s going to get through anyway, it’s the rest that are scrabbling for places.”
The comedian broke his silence on the matter today, addressing the controversy with a measured response over on his Instagram account.
“I was really proud of our dance on Saturday, and as for the Sambathon….” adding a zipped-mouth emoji.
“Well thank you so much for all of your votes. You really did help us survive double Latin! See you tomorrow partner, I’ll be bringing earplugs.”
Despite the controversy, McCausland and Buswell delivered a strong solo performance earlier in the episode, earning 34 points for their fiery Pasodoble.
Speaking on The Graham Norton Show, McCausland recently shared insights into his unique training methods with partner Dianne Buswell.
“When we started, we didn’t have a clue how we would do it so we decided to wing it and see what happens. I had never been taught to dance and Dianne had never taught anyone that couldn’t see,” he explained.
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The comedian described his unconventional learning process: “Sometimes I have to get on my hands and knees and figure out what she is doing with her legs and feet.
“And sometimes she picks a part of me and puts it where she wants it.”