Chris McCausland has admitted he was not a fan of Strictly Come Dancing before he was asked to take part in the show, and questioned the point of "watching people dance"
Comedian Chris McCausland has opened up about his doubts regarding participating in one of BBC's marquee television shows.
The 47-year-old winner of Strictly Come Dancing confessed that he was initially reluctant about joining the competition, needing persuasion to become involved. However, while on the show, the funnyman identified that what seemed like a drawback could actually work in his favour.
Chris carved a place in Strictly history when he became the programme's first visually impaired contestant last year and astonishingly went on to clinch victory.
His early reticence about joining the series and the tactics employed by some celebrities to curry favour with audiences were challenges he encountered along the way.
Speaking on the 'White Wine Question Time' podcast hosted by Kate Thornton, Chris said: "It's insane if I'm honest with you. So when I went onto that show, there was no point in me pretending that it had been a dream."
He continued by expressing his original apathy towards the show: "You get people going on there, 'I've always wanted to be on Strictly, we watch it every week, we have Strictly parties'.
"There was no point in me pretending any of this. I'd never watched it. What's the point? That's what I said, 'What's the point in me watching people dancing?' And so, and I had to be persuaded to do it."
His concerns stemmed from his blindness, as he pondered the potential pitfalls: "I'd said no to it quite a lot of times because I thought it could be a disaster. And so, there was no point in me pretending it was this dream to be on it, but there's no point in me being on it, especially coming from the point of view of somebody's who's blind, somebody with a disability."
However, the comedian made up his mind that if he was going to participate, he intended to fully commit and disprove the doubters. Detailing his approach, the Strictly victor said: "There's no point in being on it and being as rubbish as everybody would expect, so you've got to take it seriously, you've got to put the hours in.
"The only point in being on it is to surprise people and is to challenge preconceptions, otherwise you do nobody any good, you do yourself no good, and you do the people that you inadvertently represent no good."
Upon giving his all, Chris discovered that his natural comedic flair and a certain realism about the programme could charm the audience.
Realising the extent of his commitment, he articulated: "I knew that by putting 100 odd percent in it, that was my job done really and I didn't need to tick all the other boxes of being overly kind of soppy about the show. I could take the p***, I could take the mickey, I could have a dig at Craig [Revel Horwood], I could undercut the dancing, I could tell people how ridiculous some of it was.
"For me, if I knew I'd done a good job in the dance, I knew I'd done a good job for me in the dance, I'd done myself proud.
"It was an entertainment show as soon as that dance finished, and so that's what kept me sane a little bit was being allowed to undercut it and undercut myself and take the mickey out of the whole endeavour really."
