'My deafness isn't a weakness – it's my superpower,' says Tasha Ghouri

When I began dancing, I loved it. I had a space where I could express myself and feel free. But I didn't realise this until much later in life.

At the age of 16, just as I was starting my A-Levels, something clicked in me. I realised dance was a universal language and there were no barriers. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was part of a community, I felt included. I felt accepted.

Growing up for me was hard. Yes, I had my group of girl friends who were always supportive, but the education system was only prepared and equipped to deal with able students.

Despite having my first cochlear implant at the age of five, I still relied heavily on lip reading and sign language. Sadly my school, like thousands of others, didn't have the means to help children like me, and I almost felt like I was falling through the system. Teachers would turn their backs to me to write on the board, meaning I couldn't read their lips, and I was forced to give up my one channel of communication, sign language, as no one else outside of my family and close friends knew how to use it.

It was during my epiphany while dancing at the age of 16 where I finally found my confidence. Suddenly I felt like I had a voice, and the little five-year-old girl within me was finally being heard.

In 2022, I decided to go on Love Island. When I told my friends they couldn't believe it. I had slowly been growing in confidence, but perhaps not quite to the level of being on a popular mainstream reality TV show. But I had to do it for five-year-old Tasha, and I also wanted to do it for my community.

Growing up, there was no one like me on TV. There were no role models or people to aspire to be. And I wanted to change that.

I was so nervous going on Love Island, I didn't know if I would be accepted, so I decided from the off I would tell everyone about my superpower. It's what my dad has always called my disability. My deafness isn't a weakness, it isn't something that should be seen as a negative, but something that should be celebrated. It really is my superpower.

So I told my cast mates all about my deafness and my implant and they were so supportive. But no one more than Andrew [Le Page]. Dating as a deaf girl with an implant can come with challenges, and I felt that boys would always avoid the elephant in the room, and try to skirt around the fact that I was deaf and that I had an implant.

But Andrew was different. He asked questions, he wanted to learn, he wanted to educate himself, and for me, from that moment I knew he was the one. Andrew has always supported me. In fact, he has been one of my biggest cheerleaders. He even got a tattoo with the hand sign for 'I love you', which is holding an implant. He walked in one day and surprised me with it and I was totally blown away.

But it isn't always easy living with someone who is deaf. There are some weeks where I need a few days in bed to rest and recover because the sensory overload has simply been too much. My brain will physically hurt from trying to lip read all day, which I still do to coincide with my implant. It is great in that it can help me hear, but it needs recharging and I can't rely on it 24/7. I also sometimes need a break because I get chronic migraines.

There are other things to consider too. Like when we are at a train station, I can't always hear the announcements. I can't always hear that well in a busy restaurant and airplanes are a nightmare as the captain will come on the tannoy and I won’t be able to hear a word he is saying. There are so many things to consider when you are deaf, and even now, at the age of 25, there is still so much more that needs to be done in terms of inclusivity.

I loved watching Rose Ayling-Ellis on Strictly Come Dancing. She was the first person I have seen on TV who is just like me, and to watch her dance was magical. But we need more visibility. I'd love to live in a world where we have a Strictly line-up of all disabilities, or soaps where we have more than just one deaf person, because that is real life.

We have made progress and steps in the right direction where as a society we are recognising disabilities and are slowly becoming more inclusive, but it isn't enough and we are still so far away from where we need to be.

This is why in 2023 I started working with schools and Secretary of State for Education, Gillian Keegan, to ensure British Sign Language was put on the National Curriculum as a GCSE option. I felt so strongly that deaf children like me had a voice, they had a channel of communication, and they didn't feel neglected or unheard.

I'm so proud to say that as of September 2025, BSL will be taught as a GSCE across the UK, and the five-year-old Tasha is still jumping up and down with joy. The difference this will make to the next generation of deaf children is immense, but not only that, it will give able children and teachers the opportunity to learn a new skill which can be passed on to future generations.

It's also a stepping stone into my dream of a fully inclusive society, where BSL isn't just a language for deaf people, but a language full stop. Where subtitles are on all planes, news and TV shows.

Speaking of stepping stones, I took a huge one recently which I was quite nervous about.

When I get ready for a night out, I don't usually wear my cochlear implant. If I'm recording something for socials where I need to speak then I will, but one day I thought, 'I'm going to take it out and record.' I didn't post the video straight away, again I had to save it in my drafts and go away and build up the confidence. But when I finally did, it was huge for me.

I was so nervous. I was about to show everyone my deaf accent, and it was something so deeply personal to me. It wasn't something I had been willing or ready to share before, but I felt like now was the time to take the walls down and show that side of me. If you watch the video you will notice my voice sounds different.

I don't actually know how loud I'm speaking or how clear I'm speaking. I can hear what my voice sounds like with my implant, and at times it can seem quite high pitched, but without it, I can't hear it, I just feel a vibration in my throat and I feel like my speaking voice is much deeper.

The reaction I got from sharing my deaf accent was so positive and so much better than I could ever imagine. When I was on Love Island, I actually had a lot of ableism from people online about my voice and people were trolling me over the sound of my voice. There were even TikToks made about my voice where people would take the mick out of it.

I guess I should have shared my accent sooner, but at the time I was still accepting and coming to terms with the trolling and I guess that's why I held back. It's only recently that I felt this was the right time to explain why my voice may sound different and to show that vulnerable side of me.

It's only now that I feel like I have the platform to speak up for others, to show people like me it's OK. I've had girls message me on Instagram telling me they are no longer covering their implants up with their hair.

They are all small steps, but hopefully in the right direction, and to a future where girls like me can feel fully accepted in a world of able people.

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