Here is a look at who will be stepping on to the dancefloor for the BBC One show when it returns to TV screens this autumn: The comedian is the first blind contestant to compete on the show. McCausland lost his sight because of retinitis pigmentosa, a hereditary eye disease, which causes gradual degeneration of the retina. Following the Strictly announcement, the 47-year-old joked he must be the only contestant to participate in the show who has “never watched” it before.
The Liverpool-born comedian has hosted his own show on ITV on Saturday mornings, and has also featured on panel shows such as Have I Got News For You, 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown and QI. The singer rose to fame as part of boy band JLS – alongside Marvin Humes, Aston Merrygold and Oritse Williams – after they were runners-up on The X Factor in 2008. The group went on to secure five UK number one singles, a UK number one album and embarked on numerous UK tours.
Following the band’s initial 2013 break-up, Gill later presented the BBC’s Songs Of Praise and he returned to the group when it reunited in 2020. The 37-year-old also previously performed the jive with professional dancer Ola Jordan to Rockin’ Robin on the Strictly Christmas special in 2012. The British swimmer confirmed he had signed up for the dancing competition after reaching the final of the men’s 200 metres individual medley last Thursday night.
The three-time Olympic champion intends to seek out the wisdom of his Team GB teamm.