Strictly Come Dancing’s Chris McCausland has given a rare insight into fatherhood in a candid new interview.
The blind comedian, 47, shares his daughter Sophie, 11, with his wife Patricia, but prefers to keep his private life a secret and does not share images of his family on social media.
Now, Chris has opened up about how his vision loss affected him as a father and put more pressure on his wife.
he said the guardian It’s only been in the last 10 years that he says, “Maybe I’ve gotten comfortable with myself and happy to be me.”
Admitting that it had a lot to do with the birth of his daughter, he continued: “I think it really changes your perspective on life and yourself.”
Speaking about the impact of vision loss on parenting, he said: “When you’re a parent, you can’t just decide to find something else to do.” I worried a lot about that, and my wife has a lot of leeway, a lot of logistical issues.’
Strictly Come Dancing’s Chris McCausland has given rare insight into fatherhood in a candid new interview
The blind comedian, 47, shares his daughter Sophie, 11, with his wife Patricia (pictured), but prefers to keep his private life a secret and does not share images of his family on social media.
Chris previously confessed that having children “terrified him” because he worried he wouldn’t be able to do things properly and be “half a parent.”
In an interview with Gyles Brandreth, Chris explained: “I was in a big dilemma because I knew I would regret not having children, but the thought of having children terrified me.”
‘I want to be good at things, I want to do things I’m good at, that’s why I didn’t end up being a website designer. I would have done it, but it wouldn’t have been as good as it could have been if I could have seen what I was doing.
And that idea of doing something at a lower level because of my eyesight ultimately prevents me from doing many things that I have enjoyed. Even football, blind people play football. “If I can’t play football properly, I don’t want to play football.”
The star continued: ‘The idea of being a father and all the things I wasn’t going to be able to do properly. My dad, all the things he used to do with me when I was a kid, taking me to different places and the time he spent helping me build things.
“You say, ‘How am I going to be able to do those things? “I’m not going to be a proper father, I’m going to be a half-father.” That really caused a lot of torment in my head.
“Interestingly, I think I wanted a girl for that reason, because I thought if we had a girl I could be a loving father, but some of the practical obligations that fall on parents would fall more on Patricia because she would be a girl.
“There would be no boy things that I couldn’t take my son to later.” But being a father has been wonderful.”
It comes just a day after Chris was spotted for the first time since reaching the show’s quarter-finals.
Now Chris, who is currently appearing on Strictly as the first blind contestant, has spoken out about how his sight loss affected him as a father and put more pressure on his wife.
He enjoyed a casual walk with his wife Patricia in west London before heading to a cafe together.
Chris, dressed in a black zip-up sweater and a white sports cap, was held by Patricia, who tenderly took her arm through his.
Patricia echoed her husband’s relaxed outfit, wearing a brown sweater and baggy jeans.
The star seemed in good spirits as she enjoyed some time off from rehearsals with her dance partner Diane Buswell.
At one point, Chris was seen standing outside the cafe alone and busy with his mobile phone while Patricia presumably collected her drinks inside.
Chris married his psychologist wife Patricia in 2012, after he popped the question at Pearl Jam’s concert in Hyde Park.
The couple met in 2005, when star Chris was performing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where Patricia was filming a documentary about the festival.
The couple live in a flat in Surbiton with their daughter Sophie, 11, and their dog Dora.
The star recently joked that the addition of dog Dora to the family was a “point of contention” for him and his wife.
Speaking during a recent appearance on Oh My Dog! podcast, Chris said: ‘This is the point of contention. I have a horrible feeling I might seem like the most unpleasant guest you’ve ever had on the show.
‘So Dora, I would like to say that it was a family decision. There are three in our family. Me, my wife, my daughter. It was something that was discussed at length.
“At that time I was against the idea of having a dog, for many reasons. As a comedian, I travel a lot, I’m not around much. “I knew it would greatly restrict my wife and daughter’s ability to go out and socialize.”
He told how he suggested they wait until they had more space in their family home before adding to their family, but was rejected.
He added: “It would be one of those things that I get blamed for even if it wasn’t my decision to have a dog.”
‘We live in an apartment that still does not have immediate access to the outside. I was like, “Well, why don’t we let it go for a bit? When we move house, we can think about getting a dog, and we can get a dog that’s the right size.”
Chris and Dianne’s success on Saturday means they progress to the quarter-finals.
Chris and Dianne’s success on Saturday means they reach the quarter-finals.
Jamie Borthwick and her partner Michelle Tsiakkas were the last couple to be eliminated after facing off in the dance duel against Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe.
Chris’ exit comes after he broke his silence after furious Strictly fans branded the Samba-thon “discriminatory, unfair and in poor taste”.
The comedian took to the dance floor on Saturday night to compete in a high-drama Samba-thon involving all seven couples on the floor at the same time.
But viewers thought Chris was at an unfair disadvantage because he has no concept of spatial awareness, even though the judges actively encouraged the celebrities to “move” around the track.
Chris and his professional dance partner Dianne were the first couple to be kicked off the dance floor.
Leaving the dance floor first meant that Chris and Dianne only received one point, putting them in second place on the judges’ scoreboard.
But in their solo performance later in the episode, they delivered a fiery pasodoble for their performance tonight, which earned them 32 points.
X fans wrote: ‘I find it shocking that they chose this year to bring back the sambathon when Chris can’t see any of the other couples/be spatially aware of other couples. Of course he will be expelled first? In my opinion it is not in good taste’,
‘I’m sorry but the sambathon was very discriminatory against Chris, he had no perception of where the others were and couldn’t do half the movements the other couples did because he had to be connected to Dianne, poor thing. of’,
‘If it had been an annual thing, that’s one thing… but they decided to bring it back!!! It was deliberate! Selected! Get going! With a BLIND and very popular contestant! ANGRY!!!’,
Chris’ exit comes after he broke his silence after furious Strictly fans branded the Samba-thon “discriminatory, unfair and in poor taste”.
The blind comedian took to the dance floor on Saturday night to compete in a high-drama Samba-thon involving all seven couples on the floor at the same time.
‘I could have had money for Chris to be the first one out. Totally unfair. The way he clapped for the point, I think it was his way of saying “f you.”
“To be honest, it was kind of a joke as far as Chris was concerned, and it obviously didn’t bother him. He’s going to pass anyway, it’s the others fighting for a place.”
After viewers called the samba-thon “discriminatory” towards Chris, he took to Instagram to reflect on his performance.
He wrote: ‘I was very proud of our dance on Saturday, and as for the Sambathon… (closed mouth emoji)… Well, thank you very much for all your votes.
You really helped us survive double Latin! See you tomorrow mate (Dianne Buswell), I’ll bring earplugs’