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    • Chris McCausland loses grip on Glitterball trophy
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    Chris McCausland loses grip on Glitterball trophy

    Umito Posted on


    Dianne Buswell and Chris McCausland, during their appearance on Saturday's live show for BBC1's Strictly Come Dancing
    So far, Chris has been the hot favorite to win this series, and rightly so (Photo: Guy Levy/BBC/PA Wire)

    Chris McCausland is the best thing that could happen Strictly Come Dance.

    Before the show’s first live broadcast, admittedly, it wasn’t on my radar to watch, which in hindsight is a pretty embarrassing miss.

    Chris is the first-ever blind contestant in Strictly’s 20-year history, but no one could have imagined how magical it would be to see the comedian twirl his partner effortlessly. Danna Buswell on the dance floor, performing tricks that few of us, with our eyes intact, would dare attempt.

    I love it, as do the public. Each week so far, it’s the contestant I’ve most looked forward to watching, knowing full well that it’s guaranteed to either make me cry or sob into my Deliveroo.

    After Icons Week, I’m worried he’ll lose his grip on the Glitterball trophy and for the first time in this series, there’s another contender I’m more excited to watch.

    Sarah Hadland delivered perhaps one of my favorite Strictly Come Dancing performances of all time last Saturday with her Cha Cha to Like A Prayer.

    Of course, she was dressed like Madonna which is basically catnip for gays like me, so I was sold before she took her first step, but from the moment she jumped off a five foot platform into the arms of Vito Coppola with total and carefree abandon, I was hypnotized.

    This is the first performance of the series that I watch over and over again, each time impressed by something new. Vito threw Sarah around like a defunct rag doll with perfect posture, his feet moved with lightning precision and it was by far the most electric routine and – I say this as someone with no expertise – surely the most difficult of the series so far. It was so good that I barely noticed Vito in latex pants, which is a bit difficult.


    Sarah Hadland during her Strictly Come Dancing performance last Saturday
    Sarah Hadland delivered one of my favorite Strictly performances of all time (Photo: BBC/Guy Levy)

    The judges agreed, giving Sarah three nines and a 10, which still feels like a criminal score.

    Tonight, she’ll dance for Miranda’s fans, performing an American Smooth to Heather Small’s Proud, the anthem her character Stevie would spontaneously sing throughout the series.

    I’m not a Miranda fan, but it was hard to escape the enthusiasm of fans who clearly found Stevie’s live humor, laughter and love much funnier than I did on social media.

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    But you don’t have to be a Miranda fan to have been completely bowled over by Sarah. If anything, my internalized mirandaphobia meant I didn’t give Sarah the attention she deserved until recent weeks, but I admit I’m the fool who missed something.

    The best The strict winners are always the ones who have had the biggest journey, the ones who just got off to a good start. You might see them at a wedding and joke that they kept these moves a secret, but you wouldn’t push them to enter a ballroom dancing competition.

    Granted, Sarah started out stronger than a tipsy wedding guest, but she’s almost an unrecognizable dancer now when she performed the Quickstep from 9am to 5pm the first week. Even though she was fun, had buckets full of energy, and clearly had the potential to be one to watch.

    But her Cha Cha from last week was full of sass, skill and sex appeal. I’m not sure Sarah knew she did it seven weeks ago. There is now a confidence that, as long as it is not broken, could well see Sarah grow tenfold week on week and make it to the final to win the Glitterball trophy.

    So far, Chris has been the heavy favorite to win this series, and rightly so. In one week of Strictly, he achieved more than most contestants could imagine, completely transforming the perception of what the blind community is capable of in a Cha Cha.


    Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell during their performance on the live show of Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday October 12, 2024
    Chris will still be at the heart of this year’s Strictly for many reasons (Photo: Guy Levy/BBC/PA Wire)

    The following week, Chris brought me and many others to tears with his Foxtrot because watching Chris dance – and I realize how extreme that sounds – was like witnessing a miracle. I still can’t understand how he manages to be one of the strongest dancers every week, regardless of his view, and his partnership with Dianne Buswell looks like the material for a 90s buddy movie.

    Chris will still be the focus of Strictly this year for many reasons, but his competition is getting closer and in fact, Sarah is suddenly emerging as the worthy winner.

    Tasha Ghouri is clearly the more accomplished dancer and I’m not in the camp that likes to complain about her “past dance experiences”, but I want to support an underdog and it’s not Tasha.

    Rightly or wrongly, Wynne has fallen out of contention since his weird ‘joke’ where he touched Katya Jones was apparently taken the wrong way and JB Gill danced better when he was on X Factor.

    In an ideal world, Montell Douglas would reach the final as she deserves alongside Chris and Sarah, but as we saw in the US this week, more often than not the public can’t be trusted to vote. And if reports are to be believed, this series will be Johannes Radebe’s last and he deserves to bow out with one of his best partners so far and in the finale.

    At this point, I don’t see anyone else breaking through and suddenly getting closer to victory, but just a week ago I would have never imagined anyone other than Chris lifting that Glitterball trophy. Sadly, he’s getting closer to the bottom of the rankings and while he’s still a total giveaway to Strictly, Sarah becomes just that little bit more of a reason to be excited.

    Now, I would go so far as to say that this competition belongs to Sarah – and I don’t see anyone standing in her way.

    Strictly Come Dancing continues tonight at 6.35pm on BBC One.

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    Umito
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