Strictly Come Dancing champion Chris McCausland opened up about the show on Lorraine today and said that it’s ‘consumed’ him – while he also spoke about missing the live tour

Strictly champion Chris McCausland spoke out today about the emotional toll of the dance show and his absence from the live tour.

He joined Ranvir Singh on Lorraine this morning to discuss his Strictly Come Dancing win with professional partner Dianne Buswell. Chris opened up about his experience on the show, commenting: “It’s been a really emotional Saturday night and I’m still feeling quite worn down by it. It’s been three and a half months; it’s relentless. It’s consuming – physically and mentally it takes a toll. This is what the show does, it wears you down physically and mentally and then it pokes you with a stick until you cry in front of everybody.”

He also expressed disappointment at not being able to join the upcoming Strictly live tour but laughed off the initial underestimation of his dancing abilities, quipping that no one thought he’d get this far.

Discussing his prior commitments, he admitted: “I started my tour in January this year and I did the first leg until May and I was meant to be back out in September. We moved the dates to accommodate Strictly, so we just moved them to January.

Chris and Dianne won the 2024 series of Strictly Come Dancing

“We had to move these dates to accommodate Strictly and it just wasn’t a consideration at the time… I don’t think anybody thought I would be any good at it. I don’t think they thought it, I don’t think I thought it. And in terms of going on tour in January, I didn’t think I’d be going on tour on the back of Strictly. I thought I’d have about two months off.”

In a fitting conclusion to their Strictly journey, Dianne shared a touching tribute to Chris on social media after their victory.

She wrote: “From the man who said to me weekly, ‘Di, I’m just a 47-year-old comedian who signed the wrong paper’, to the winner of strictly come dancing 2024. Chris started this show not having any idea at ALL about any of it!”

Chris opened up on missing the Strictly live tour (Image: BBC)
“I wasn’t just teaching Chris the dances I was explaining everything that was also going on around us and as you know there’s a lot that goes on visually with strictly. it blew my mind even more when I actually started to explain things out loud I had so much more appreciation for everything . My teaching style was 90 percent visual I wouldn’t want to teach in a room without mirrors because it was the way I perfected things . With Chris we had to find different ways of making it work.”

She continued: “And this is what Chris is brilliant at he is a problem solver and he taught me to think outside the box . Just because there’s an obstacle in the way doesn’t mean you can’t get to the destination successfully. I am forever grateful for the friendship I have gained in such an incredible person he says I changed his life but like wise I see things in a different way now and I’m forever grateful.”

She opened up about the unforgettable experience, adding: “This really was a moment that I’ll never forget in my life! I had my beautiful parents in the audience and them seeing me dance was something I wanted for so long the fact they got to see us lift the glitterball was just magical. I’m still so overwhelmed with the kindness of people and the support you have shown us.”