The comedian told the ECHO about the hilarious story when he met the Reds icon and didn’t want to come across as too starstruck
Chris McCausland shared the hilarious story in an interview with the ECHO(Image: EMERY PR)
Chris McCausland was mortified as she shared what happened when he met Steven Gerrard. The 2024 Strictly Come Dancing winner is a huge Liverpool FC fan and channelled his support for the team into one of the most emotionally stirring moments of last season when he performed a Waltz to You’ll Never Walk Alone with partner Dianne Buswell.
The 48-year-old from West Derby spoke to the ECHO in an exclusive interview this week as his new autobiography, Keep Laughing was released. The stand up spoke about how his upbringing in West Derby shaped the person he is today.
The comedian told the ECHO: “Liverpool is a funny city. What helps is its history. The political history, with tragedy and poverty. All of that has built a city that is colourful and vibrant, that laughs in the face of adversity and uses comedy to get through dark times.
“It’s a city with two major football teams. You’ve got Evertonians and Liverpudlians in the same families, working alongside each other and you’re all ribbing one another. It’s all added to this melting pot that made it, when I was growing up, a vibrant and funny place to be.”
Chris is a household name in comedy and recalled an hilarious encounter when he got to meet his Reds hero, Steven Gerrard, while working on coverage of an England game on Channel 4. He said: “He’s the most meaningful footballer in my adult fandom. He gave so many good days in periods of s**t.”
However, Chris laughed he didn’t want to come across as too starstruck to encounter the iconic former captain, as he laughed: “I was like play it cool. Don’t be like a fanboy. He came over to me and he put his hand out and said, ‘Nice to meet you’.”
“I went, ‘Alright Stevie, nice to meet you.’ I played it so cool, I think I came across like I didn’t give a s**t. I think I went too far the other way. I was so trying to not fanboy over him. I was like, ‘Oh yes, Stevie, this experience means nothing to me.”
Being a Liverpool FC supporter is a hugely important part of Chris’ identity, as he spoke about how pressured he felt ahead of his celebrated Waltz to You’ll Never Walk Alone, which will go down as one of Strictly’s greatest ever moments.
He said: “I’d like to say I went into that with my hand on my heart, tingles down my spine. But I was terrified and I had cramps in my guts. You’ll Never Walk Alone was just behind the first episode in how nervous I was just because I didn’t want to do a rubbish job.
“It is such an important song for people that I didn’t want to cock it up and I didn’t want it to be underwhelming. The pressure I piled on myself, because we’re not just doing a dance to a song. It’s played at every game at Anfield and it means so much to the city.”
However, Chris more than delivered as he told the ECHO how his performance to the Liverpool FC anthem even managed to move those on the blue half of Merseyside, and our rivals down the M62.
He said: “I was getting messages from Evertonians and Man Utd fans saying, ‘I can’t believe you made me cry to You’ll Never Walk Alone. I’ll never forgive you for this.’
“They’re saying it tongue in cheek, but they’re saying they hate the fact they appreciate [You’ll Never Walk Alone] and that’s the biggest compliment you can get.”
Chris’ book, Keep Laughing, was released to much acclaim this week. He explained how the experience of showing his vulnerabilities on Strictly helped change his outlook to open up in the book.
He said: “Two years ago, I would never have talked about this. I always kept a lid on things. Personal things should stay personal. You let people see what you want them to see and you put a front on.”
Chris’ autobiography explores his remarkable journey in comedy and sees him reflect on how he lost his sight in his 20s because of hereditary eye condition, retinitis pigmentosa. He explained how his mum and nan’s experience with the hereditary condition, and the way they brushed it off with humour, helped teach him coping mechanisms that would enable him to come to terms with losing his vision.
He said: “Blindness was in my family so it was always just kind of a normal part of life. Things happen and they’re frustrating. You can swear at items of furniture that you bang your head on and lose your patience, but you’ve got to laugh at the daftness of it, otherwise it would eat you alive.”
You can read the ECHO’s full interview with Chris here. Chris’ autobiography, Keep Laughing, is available now.