Star of Strictly Chris McCausland previously opened up about the chances of his daughter going blind after he and his sister inherited the disease that caused his sight problems from their mum.
The 47-year-old comedian and actor is currently taking the Strictly competition by storm with pro dancer Dianne Buswell. Week by week, the pair have improved, impressed the panel, and have so far avoided the dreaded bottom two.
Due to his retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic disorder, Chris is completely blind. However, that hasn’t stopped him from pursuing a successful career and taking part in Strictly.
Strictly star Chris McCausland on hereditary condition
During an interview with The Times last month, Chris shared that he and his sister inherited retinitis pigmentosa from his mum, who is also blind.
By the age of 22, Chris had lost all his sight. His grandmother and two of his mother’s four siblings also had the condition. With a 50/50 chance of passing it on to others, Chris revealed: “My daughter [Sophie] hasn’t got it, so far as we know.”
Before going completely blind, he discussed what it was like navigating life with a little bit of sight left.
“You’re struggling all the time to use the little bit you’ve got, even though it’s no use to you. You’re in denial that you’re blind. You’re bumping into things. You get yourself into more trouble than if you just own it,” Chris admitted.
‘I suffer more for it’
Due to being blind, many people choose not to travel. However, that isn’t the case for Chris.
“They say that when you lose your sight, your hearing gets better. It doesn’t. But you do pay more attention to it,” he told i News.
“So when you’re sat at a beach resort, and you’re hot, and you can’t see what’s around you, then you just end up concentrating on how hot you actually are. I suffer more for it.”
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