Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell has given fans an insight into how she trains with comedian Chris McCausland.
Chris, 47, makes history as Strictly’s first-ever blind contestant this year, as Dianne, 35, returns for her eighth series as a pro, having reached the final last year with Bobby Brazier.
With her sights on the coveted glitterball trophy once more, the flame-haired Australian star has to take a new approach to training, having adapted her teaching methods to ensure Chris can pick up the steps.
Chris lost his sight fully at age 22 due to a hereditary condition called retinitis pigmentosa, having previously said he ‘didn’t even really notice it happening’ due to gradually going blind since birth.
Despite the obstacles in his path, the comic delivered a stellar cha cha cha during Saturday’s live show, wowing both the Strictly audience and the judges and earning a respectable 23 points.
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Following their triumph, which led to viewers declaring their partnership ‘extraordinary,’ Dianne took to Instagram this afternoon with some rehearsal footage.
The choreographer uploaded a clip of one move that got everyone talking, as Dianne did a headstand before Chris caught her legs.
Naturally, the stunt took a lot of practice, with bloopers capturing the moment Chris was unable to keep hold of her, resulting in her flopping to the floor in hysterics.
Writing in her caption, Dianne, who is dating 2018 Strictly finalist Joe Sugg, was emotional as she thanked fans for their support.
She began: ‘Wow what a night ! I can truly say dancing last night with Chris was one of my most memorable dance experiences I have ever had!’
On their backstage chats, she added: ‘He said to me before we went out let’s not tell our selves we are going to be amazing because that’s just adding pressure , he said let’s tell ourselves we’re just going to go and have fun !! Followed by a Di what the #%*% am I doing here 🤣🤣🤣’
‘Thank you for your trust Chris your an absolute LEGEND and I can not wait to share that floor with you as many times as we get the chance too 🙏🥹 [sic]’, Dianne signed off sweetly.
In the comments, the couple were showered with praise, as former Strictly star Gemma Atkinson commented: ‘Loved it!!! 🔥’
‘Totally EPIC ❤️❤️’, said presenter Tess Daly.
On the toll this weekend has taken on him, Chris commented under Dianne’s post: ‘I was so emotionally frazzled afterwards and I am still recovering. You are the absolute best! See you on Monday partner 🫡❤️’
In their opening VT before their performance to Beatles classic Twist And Shout, Dianne explained how working with Chris is different to any celebrity she’s taught in the past.
She said: ‘I can’t show him what something needs to look like.
‘I’ve found Chris places his hand on my body and feels how my arms and my legs are moving and then he instantly gets an idea of what he should be doing.’
Chris added: ‘She is really patient and bringing the best out of me’.
He and Dianne are already being tipped for the win this series, having been the talk of social media last night, if not for their dancing then for how Chris clapped back at Craig Revel Horwood’s criticism.
‘I’m too knackered to care, mate!’, quipped the Liverpudlian star, adding: ‘I’ll drive you home tonight.’
Appearing on Channel 4’s Scared of the Dark, Chris previously detailed what his sight loss means.
‘I’m blind but I don’t see black,’ he told cameras.
‘I still see light and space, I still have an awareness of the space around me, not in terms of objects and things, but in terms of the room and whether there might be something in front of me.
‘It just gives you that awareness that you’re taking that away from me. I’m a slave to my iPhone like everybody else. So on paper, you go, “Well, I should nail this,” but in one area I should be more practically adjusted.’
Prior to finding fame on stage and screen, Chris worked as a web developer, a job he was forced to give up when his vision deteriorated.
‘I used to be a website developer, but my eyesight got worse and worse, and the websites just got uglier and uglier,’ he said in 2012.
‘I decided that nobody wanted an ugly website and so made the decision to get out of IT completely.’
Chris then worked in a call centre for a while before daring to give stand-up a go.
The loveable star returns to the dancefloor next weekend, alongside the likes of Tasha Ghouri, Pete Wicks, Shayne Ward, Wynne Evans, Sarah Hadland, JB Gill, and Nick Knowles, when the public vote opens and two couples must dance for their place in the contest.
Strictly Come Dancing continues next Saturday at 6:15pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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