Dianne Buswell was left fighting back tears on Strictly Come Dancing as she paid tribute to her dance partner Chris McCausland.

The 35-year-old Australian dance professional has won extra praise during the 2024 season of the BBC competition for considerately choreographing routines for comedian Chris – who is blind due to retinitis pigmentosa. On Saturday night, viewers were stunned as Dianne and 47-year-old Chris were joined on stage by other professional dancers as part of their routine.

While it was week 11 of the long-running show, it was also Musicals Week with the celebrities and their dance partners showing off their footwork to a soundtrack of songs from West End and Broadway shows. Dianne and Chris performed a Quickstep to the sound of You’re The Top from Anything Goes.

The routine saw them dressed in nautical outfits – and extra dancers skipped and hopped around them as they commanded the stage. After performing, the duo received an impressive 32 points from the judges – along with some sharp criticism.

Dianne was impressed by Chris’s ability to perform an ambitious routine ( 
Image:
BBC)

While speaking to Claudia Winkleman after they danced, Dianne was close to tears while discussing how much Chris had grown over the course of the show so far. Claudia asked Chris: “How did you find it? And did you welcome the extra dancers?”

And he said while responding: “It feels good to dance. It’s joyful, you know? That was really fun. It’s been a good week doing it all. Having the extra dancers, it’s… I can’t see them around me, but it’s the idea that what it is around me. Especially because it feels like you’re bringing a proper show.”

Turning to his dance partner, Claudia asked: “Diane, you say he blew your mind this week?” She began: “He did. You’ve just seen what he did there. I am so grateful for [the judge’s] constructive criticism -” and Chris interrupted to laugh: “I’m not!”

And continuing, Dianne became close to tears as she continued to praise the stand up star. She remarked: “But you mustn’t forget, for 20 odd years, Chris’s safe space has been down here [looking at the floor]. So for him to stand up and, it makes me quite emotional, because it is a big thing that we’ve overcome. And you’ve done so well!”

Viewers were touched by the exchange and took to X to comment on Dianne’s tearful comments. One remarked: “Dianne has made me emotional taking about how much chris has improved in the competition you can tell they have the best friendship and love seeing it on the dance floor each week.” And another typed: “Well, Chris and Dianne, that was amazing!!! #Strictly.”

However, some fans were fuming that the judges gave Chris and Dianne a low score compared to the other contestants. One wrote: “Stop judging Chris on the same level as those who can see. He is INCREDIBLE and Dianne is a genius. That was a bloody 40 #strictly.”