1 week Ago By [email protected] (Phoebe Tonks)
After 12 weeks of sequins, shimmies and more fancy footwork than you can shake a stick at, this week Strictly Come Dancing ’s phenomenal 20th series will finally come to a close, with the four remaining contestants Sarah Hadland, JB Gill, Chris McCausland and Tasha Ghouri , duking it out for the chance to claim the coveted glitter ball trophy. Yet while many fans are used to the process by now, this year marks a historic first for the hit BBC show, as two of the four finalists are disabled - a move which many disability charities have praised for finally showing disabled people up and down the country, that anything is possible when it comes to living their dreams. Finalist Chris, who has been partnered with Diane Buswell for this year's competition, lives with a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, a rare genetic condition which causes vision loss, and has led the comedian becoming blind.
Meanwhile former Love Island star Tasha Ghouri, who has been paired with Aljaž Škorjanec, was born deaf and after initially being fitted for a hearing aid as a child, later went on to be given a cochlear implant. This weekend, both Tasha and Chris will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of former deaf contestant Rose Ayling-Ellis, who famously won the show back in 2021 with partner Giovanni Pernice , after dazzling judges and audiences alike. Speaking about the significance of having two disabled contestants make it all the way to the final after stunning audiences with their performances on screen, Steven Morris, Campaigns Officer for the disability charity Sense, who himself is deafblind, said: “Over the last few months, millions across the country have been wowed by the efforts of Chris and Tasha.
“Their incredible progress to this weekend’s final goes to show that given opportunities and support, disabled people can break down barriers many wrongly don’t think are possible. "This is an important moment for representation. Disabled people make up nearly a quarter (24%) of the population, but more than a third (39%) say that their experiences are never or rarely seen in the media.
"Hopefully, Chris and Tasha’s success on this year’s Strictly will lead to many more disabled people being included in the biggest TV shows.” Meanwhile, the Royal Society for Blind Children also weighed in on the milestone moment, with Julie Davis, CEO saying: “Chris’s Strictly journey has been an inspiration to the 35,000 children and young people living with vision impairment across the UK. Every week he has thrown himself into the experience and broken outdated stereotypes about what blind and partially sighted people can achieve.
“Learning to dance, at the level he has, is challenging for anyone. However, Chris and Diane have been able to demonstrate that, with the right structure and tools, anyone can reach their full potential whether it’s on the Strictly dancefloor, education, or in everyday life. Absolutely thrilled for Chris and Diane!” The Strictly Come Dancing final airs Saturday December 14 at 6pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
