Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood has come under fire for his critical feedback to blind comedian Chris McCausland following his Blackpool Week routine.
Still the frontrunner to lift the Glitterball Trophy, McCausland kicked off Saturday night’s show with pro partner Dianne Buswell with an American Smooth to Jump by Paul Anka.”
Inevitably, the duo earned a raucous round of applause from the Blackpool crowd and the judges also had nothing but kind words – bar Revel Horwood.
Du Beke branded the routine “great” and added he would be “surprised” if any other routine topped it.
“What a way to open the show,” Motsi Mabuse complimented while Shirley Ballas praised the comedian for “not missing a beat”.
Sensing Revel Horwood may have sterner words to share, McCausland even joked with Tess Daly about cutting the feedback short and leaving while he was ahead.
But the long-serving judge wasn’t going to let McCausland escape as he shared: “I thought you were slightly ahead getting into the line-up.”
As boos rang out around the arena, Revel Horwood shrugged and continued: “It’s only what I saw.
“The arm extensions could do with some finesse, you need to work from the shoulder to the elbow and out to the hand itself.”
The booing continued in the Blackpool Tower ballroom but Revel Horwood persisted: “It lacked any swing or sway.”
However, there was some praise on the way: “Your frame has improved beyond compare and you did that dance justice. I thought it was brilliant.”
Revel Horwood ended up giving him a score of eight, the lowest from any of the judges.
Motsi Mabuse soon followed up with a score of nine while Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke judged the routine worthy of a perfect 10.
Buswell was left in tears after raking in their first perfect scores of the series so far but viewers at home weren’t impressed with Revel Horwood’s criticism.
On X, formerly Twitter, one fan hit out at the judge: “Chris was bl**dy brilliant…immaculate timing. Just as good as the pro’s. 8….really Craig – that was a 10 all day long. #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing.”
A second also slammed Revel Horwood’s analysis: “FFS Craig, the man is blind, danced in time with a group of dancers and you only give an 8! Give the man a f***ing break! Even Motsi was unfair. #Strictly.”
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“Absolute bulls*** from craig…….brilliant Chris #strictly,” a third raged, followed by applause emojis.
“Chris deserved 40. Hate this ‘I need to be an antagonist’ mentality from Craig.. #Strictly,” a fourth echoed before a fifth blasted: “Craig is such a soul sucking a**. Chris is BLIND FFS.
“Give him more credit. He’s phenomenal and should be judged accordingly. The man can’t see yet is still better than some of the others. Tired of his petty rhetoric now #strictly #StrictlyComeDancing.”
However, there was some praise for Revel Horwood and his approach to McCausland’s score as one viewer argued: “Tbf as much as Craig annoys me I kinda love that he’s treating Chris as an able bodied person and critiquing him in the exact same way #strictly.” (sic)
