Strictly star Chris McCausland's heartwarming realisation about success on show amid 'winner' claims

Strictly star Chris McCausland is a favourite to lift the Glitterball trophy this year after being paired with pro dancer Dianne Buswell. But he's not letting the praise go to his head

Having a disability doesn't have to stop you from following your dreams as Strictly's star of the show Chris McCausland has been proving week after week with his fancy footwork, hilarious one liners and enthusiasm for taking on the dance routines despite being blind.

Strictly Come Dancing 2024 hadn't even kicked off before viewers decided Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell would be the winners based on pairings alone. But comedian Chris - best known for his role as Rudi in the CBeebies show Me Too! - may have won the nation's heart but he's keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

Chris and Dianne's beautiful waltz set to the Liverpool anthem You'll Never Walk Alone had viewers gulping back tears and judges struggling to compose themselves last week before scoring them 35 points out of a possible 40. After the show, Chris revealed how the emotional dance and song meant a lot to him as he comes from Liverpool and supports Liverpool Football Club.

Appearing on It Takes Two after last week's show, host Janette Manrara praised Chris latest performance, asking: "What a beautiful, beautiful dance, how emotional did you think that dance would be for you?" Chris responded: "There's a lot of pressure in terms of wanting to do a good job. You don't want to do a rubbish job on a song that means so much to so many people, especially as it's so connected to where you're from."

As always Chris showed that he hasn't let praise from the judges and fans go to his head and heartwarmingly admitted that he was surprised he hasn't been kicked out. "I'm, surprised I'm here, to be honest," he said. "I didn't think I'd be able to do it. I'm surprising myself, that's what I'm saying. I'm surprising people out there, surprising myself. I'm probably surprising you (Dianne). I think we together are surprising ourselves."

The star previously shared his incredible training regime and how he perfects dances blind. Chris and his dancing partner Dianne prepare for their routines by completing a checklist before they get started. "I have to have a little breather, and start in my own time,” Chris explained. “We have to do that thing like they do on the planes.

"They don't just take off, they have a little checklist. They cross-check the doors, make sure the seats are upright, the blinds are up. I have to go through my checklist in my head - doors to manual. OK, Di?" Former Australian Open champion, Dianne revealed how she has to 'place Chris' hands on her body' to allow him to feel what he should be doing. "I can't show him what something needs to look like,” she says. "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 has also joked in the past that he won’t be on the show for very long saying Dianne is absolutely over the moon having him as a partner because “Dianne really wants November off. You’ve got a holiday booked, haven’t you?!" But with November just round the corner it looks like that holiday might have to be put on hold.

Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday and Sundays on BBC One and BBC iplayer. Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.