Britain’s Got Talentis back, and the first
auditions show of the 2017 series proved to be a real Easter treat.
TheITVsinging
competition returned with more un-missable auditions, featuring mind-readers, a
tear-jerking choir – and one of the most jaw-dropping singers the show has ever
seen.
Here are
five performances you need to see from the show’s return.
Make sure you tune into Britain's Got Talent tonight at 7pm on ITV where all will be revealed!
The wait is almost over!
Ahead of tonight's awesome Britain's Got Talent, here's the acts who'll be hoping to impress the Judges and edge one step closer to the Royal Variety Performance...
The Judges flip out over The Togni Brothers | Britain's Got Talent 2016 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sz9zCNePwvc
Darren Altman takes on Ant and Dec | Britain's Got Talent 2016 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_4tPVm4I_o&spfreload=5
TAGS Britains Got Talent 2016, Simon Cowell, David Walliams, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon, Alexandr Magala, Beau Dermott, Darren Altman, Elite Squad, George Kavanagh, Lucy and Trip Hazard, Madame Zucchini, Nicholas Bryant, Paisley Kerswell, Peter K Rollings, Rainbow Elvis, Shani Belly Dancers, The Tonghi Brothers, Tony Baloney, Vitaly Voronko
Britain's Got Talent (BGT) 2015 the presenters and judges joke around and prank each other. Simon Cowell, David Walliams, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon are back. As well as presenters Ant and Dec and Stephen Mulhern who presents Britain's Got More Talent (BGMT)
Speaking candidly on Irish television, the pop mogul says: "I want to get back to being a manager"
Pop mogul Louis Walsh has revealed he is “done with X Factor” after 11 years on the hit show.
The 62-year-old said he wants to go back to managing acts and expects TV bosses will want to bring in new faces to freshen up the panel.
The X Factor judge also said that Simon Cowell claims all the credit for the former five-piece boyband One Direction.
Speaking on TV3, he said: “I think I’m done with X Factor honestly. My day job is as a manager, I’ve kind of neglected that. I want to get back to being a manager.
“I’m working with Shane Filan, he’s got a new record coming out, and I’m working with Hometown. I’d like to get back to where I started off… I never wanted to be on TV, it just happened.”
He also said that his reason for leaving was due to the X Factor producers, adding that they reportedly think the show needs a shake-up.
He said: “I’ve done 11 seasons. That’s a long time on television. I think they’re going to change it, go for a few new faces.
But while Louis is ready to leave behind his X Factor days, he claims he will never be able to put his music business behind him.
He said: “If you don’t like this business you shouldn’t be in it. You have to be full time, you have to love it.
“I still love it. I still look at the charts, I still buy music, I still go to gigs. It keeps you young.”
The music manager, who was speaking on The Seven O’Clock Show with boyband Hometown, also had a jibe at fellow X Factor judge Cowell.
He said: “Simon takes most of the credit, but Nicole Scherzinger and I were very much involved as well.
“If it hadn’t of worked Simon would have said that it was our idea.
“But [Simon] did press all the buttons. He made it work.”
Ben Haenow sings Something I Need (Winners Single) | The Final Results | The X Factor UK 2014
Originally by One Republic, this huge track was released in 2013 and both Ben Haenow and Fleur East http://youtu.be/-cu-_sHT9j0
Croydon boy Ben Haenow has been named
this year's X Factor winner after going head to head with Fleur East in the 2014
final at Wembley Arena.
The contestants, who were both mentored by Simon Cowell in the over-25s
group, sang two songs in front of the judges and a 10,000-strong audience.
The winner was chosen by the public, with 10 million voting on the night.
"This what you've waited for for 12 years," Cowell told Haenow. "This is what
turning into a star feels like."
"You deserved it, you're a great guy. This is your moment."
East, 26, was the bookies' favourite to win the series after topping the
iTunes chart with her cover of Mark Ronson's Uptown Funk last week.
For their song of the series, Haenow sang Michael Jackson's Man in the
Mirror, while East repeated her success with Uptown Funk, which became a UK
number one for Ronson this weekend.
Both contestants sang the same winner's song, a cover version of One
Republic's Something I Need.
Haenow's version was greeted by raucous applause from around the arena.
Mel B told him: "I think this song was truly made for you."
Ahead of the final decision, Cowell called it "the best and closest final I
think I have ever judged", adding that he wished he could split the prize.
Sunday's final was peppered with performances from previous X Factor stars,
notably One Direction and Olly Murs, who duetted with Demi Lovato - a former
judge on the now defunct US version of The X Factor.
One Direction performed alongside Rolling Stone guitarist Ronnie Wood, though
the biggest cheers of the night were still reserved for Harry Styles.
Asked what Mick Jagger thought of him performing with boy band, Wood said:
"Mick thinks this is hilariously creative."
Grammy nominee Sam Smith performed Stay With Me in the final minutes of
voting.
His advice to the winner: "Surround yourself with good people that you trust
and never ever do anything that you don't want to do."
Mixed success
X Factor winners have had mixed success over the 11 years the show has been
running, with runners up like Murs and JLS often proving more successful than
the winners, who include such forgotten names as Leon Jackson and Joe
McElderry.
Probably the most successful artists to come out of the show, One Direction,
came third in 2010.
Last year's winner Sam Bailey went on to score the Christmas Number One with
Demi Lovato's Skyscraper. Earlier this year her debut album went to number one,
ahead of her taking time off to have a baby.
The ITV singing contest has seen a marked decline in its audience over recent
years, with ratings falling by nearly six million over the past four years when
Saturday's final was compared to the same stage of the competition in 2010.
Nonetheless, it continues to be a dominant force in primetime television,
with adverts during the final being among the most expensive on UK TV.
It was hoped the return of Simon Cowell and Cheryl Fernandez-Versini to the
judging panel would boost viewing figures this year, as well as the arrival of
former Spice Girl Mel B to the judging panel.
However there was a further hiatus on Saturday when Brown was unable to
attend the first part of the final - and support her only remaining contestant
Andrea Faustini - due to sickness.
Italian Faustini was the first of the three to be voted off.
From her Instagram account, it looks as though James got down on one knee at the couple's home, after cooking her a delicious dinner of baked cod with capers.
The blonde beauty shared two snaps from her evening. The first showed her at the dining table in her favourite dress, the second was a snap shot of her dins.
"Pretending we are going out for dinner! Cooking 3 course meal, dressed in our best clothes- all taking place at our kitchen table! Parents night in/out #nobabysitterneeded," she captioned the first snap.
Katie and carpenter James welcomed their first child, Belle, earlier this year after dating for two years.
Speaking about her relationship earlier this year, Katie said: “Before I met James, there were times I didn’t cope well. Because I’d accepted the way I looked , it was a knockback when the rest of the world wasn’t as accepting. When I was ready to start dating, it didn’t go well.
“I wanted an adult relationship but people were coming up to me in bars, patting me on the head and telling me I was brave or sweet. Once a guy asked for my number and I thought he liked me but he wanted me to open his village fete.
“As a woman approaching her 30s, all I wanted was someone to take me out for a drink but I felt asexual. When guys didn’t text back, I had to keep reminding myself he might not have fancied me because I was boring – I couldn’t always bring it back to being burnt.”
Katie added: “He’s a normal guy with a normal job, quite private and that’s what I liked about him. He hasn’t read the new book. I made him read the first one and he got angry. I suppose he feels protective over me but he can’t change the past.”
Katie said she knew very early on that this was the real deal – because he was completely comfortable with her medical issues while recovering from an op at the start of their relationship.
That showed her she could trust him and from then on, she didn’t worry about her injuries around him – and she stopped hiding away pictures of herself in the attack’s aftermath.
“You’d never normally talk about medical problems after dating for six weeks,” she said. “But I’d had a nose operation which left a hole with pus and snot dripping out.
“On top of that, they’d taken cartilage out of my rib so I had a tube draining out body fluid. And because I couldn’t put weight on that side I bought this pink, flowery, flick-out waking stick from Robert Dyas.
“All this at the stage where you’re supposed to be wearing matching underwear in case things go further.
“But honestly, he did not care. So after it all healed, I was like, ‘Wow, this guy is definitely not shallow’.
“I knew right then I could let myself fall in love with him because he would never hurt me intentionally.
“When he first came to the flat, I hid pictures of me with my mask on with my family and my doctor, which made me feel like a fraud. I didn’t want to put him off, then I realised it was OK to be me.”
Seven months ago, Katie’s dream was completed when she gave birth to their daughter. And the pair have strong ideas about how to bring her up to be accepting and open-minded – such as involving her in the Katie Piper Foundation .
“We’ve talked a lot about what it’s going to be like for Belle growing up and there’s all kinds of different factors to consider. I wonder if we’re over-talking it,” Katie said.
Watch the brand new X Factor trailer - featuring Simon Cowell, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, Mel B and Louis Walsh. Join our four judges on their quest for the best. Find out more at itv.com/xfactor
I’m approaching my 10th year of agenting next year, but when I started I remember how hard it was when having to knock on many doors that seemed bolted shut.
It didn’t help that this industry’s behind the scenes activity was, and still is, shrouded in a degree of secrecy. I had to learn by trial and error the correct etiquette and I didn’t always get it right. But it led me to operate without a curtain over the Wizard of Oz mechanics of agenting, which led to to publish Cole Kitchenn’s client list online back in 2005 when I only had 10 clients, back when few other agencies had websites at all.
In keeping with that spirit, here follows five dos and don’ts for those readers starting out and looking for just a smidgeon of guidance…
Do keep your cover letter brief, edit out the bullsh*t, and let the agent simply see the bare bones of the facts at a glance
Don’t open with a bad joke.
Do send your submission and wait a week before one gentle nudge to ensure the safe receipt/draw attention to the approach.
Don’t turn up at the office with a CV in hand. I’m pretty sure that’s always an awkward moment. And don’t chase more than once.
Do send them an example of work – be it a showreel, a home filmed scene or song even if just recorded around a piano.
Don’t pretend you know the agent better than you do – over familiarity can lead back to that awkwardness.
Do put on a show if you have to. Don’t grab attention by phone harassment or door stepping, grab attention by doing something brilliant. A showcase, a fringe play, a screening of a self made short, a concert. We agents know how hard it is to achieve one of those things, and respect it.
Don’t send presents. Over the years I’ve received all sorts of weird and wonderful packages, but I’ve never signed someone because of a lollipop or an envelope stuffed with confetti.
Do sell yourself, rooted in truth. Imagine how an American actor would introduce themselves, and own it. We Brits are often too self effacing.
Don’t lie. Like any relationship, a good one is built on trust.
Reporter suspended by Sun after judge says case cannot go on because of 'strong grounds to believe' he lied at hearing
The trial of the singer and TV entertainer Tulisa Contostavlos over drugs allegations has dramatically collapsed after the judge ruled that the Sun investigative reporter whose evidence was central to the case had seemingly lied on oath.
In scathing comments with potentially significant repercussions for Mazher Mahmood, the veteran undercover reporter often known as the "fake sheikh", judge Alistair McCreath said he believed Mahmood had lied in the witness stand.
Mahmood has since been suspended by his newspaper.
There were "strong grounds for believing that the underlying purpose of these lies was to conceal the fact that he had been manipulating the evidence in this case" by getting another witness to change his account, McCreath told the jury.
The judge dismissed the jury at Southwark crown court, telling them the case "cannot go any further".
Contostavlos grinned broadly in the glassed dock as the judge read his ruling. She then hugged relatives and supporters, weeping. Her lawyer embraced the 26-year-old outside the courtroom, telling her: "It's over now."
Outside court a nervous-looking Contostavlos condemned "a horrific and disgusting entrapment" by Mahmood and the newspaper.
She said: "Mahmood has now been exposed by my lawyers openly lying to the judge and jury. These lies were told to stop crucial evidence going before the jury."
She added: "Thankfully, the lies have been uncovered and justice has been done."
Contostavlos was on trial for allegedly setting up an £800 cocaine deal between a friend and Mahmood, who made his name with similar sting-type operations on the News of the World before that paper closed.
Mahmood posed as a wealthy Bollywood film producer interested in casting the singer and former X Factor judge as the lead in a major film, flying her to Las Vegas and taking her to a luxury London restaurant. Details of the drugs deal and her alleged role in it were then published in the Sun.
Contostavlos insisted throughout that she had been entrapped and only pretended an interest in drugs to play up to a "bad girl" image seemingly sought by the producers.
Her friend, Mike Coombs, a rapper with the stage name Mike GLC, pleaded guilty to supplying the drugs to Mahmood, but the case against him has also been dropped.
The apparent lie by Mahmood dates back to a pre-trial hearing in which he denied having seen a police statement made by his driver, Alan Smith, about a conversation Smith had with Contostavlos while dropping her home in which she expressed disapproval of drugs.
But under cross-examination on Thursday Mahmood conceded he had received an emailed copy of the statement.
Jeremy Dein QC, for the defence, asked if he had "put influence" on Smith to change the statement. The reporter denied this, but later conceded he had discussed his worries about the statement with Smith.
The judge intervened to say this appeared to show Mahmood had lied to manipulate the evidence and that he was considering whether to order a trial, allow bad character evidence against Mahmood, or drop the case entirely.
On Monday he announced the latter option, telling the jury that had he known about Mahmood's actions he would have agreed to an earlier defence application to dismiss the case.
Mahmood, he added, was the "sole progenitor" of the case and had gone to "considerable" lengths to get Contostavlos involved in crime, certainly more than police would have done.
The judge did not mention whether Mahmood could face a perjury trial, but this is now a possibility.
BOYBAND COLLABRO WIN BRITAIN'S GOT TALENT 2014 TO BEAT OPERA SINGER LUCY KAY AND BARS AND MELODY (BAM)
Congratulations, Collabro have WON Britain’s Got Talent 2014!! Incredible scenes!! #BGTfinal
What a nail biting final it was difficult to call. Too bad for Bars and Melody and Jack Pack who we absolutely loved on the night and think deserved to WIN or a place in the top 3 at least.
After weeks of nail-biting auditions and five days of tense semi-finals, Britain’s Got Talent picked one of the 11 acts to be the 2014 champion.
And the public chose Callabro to be crowned this year's winner, where they will take home a £250,000 cash prize and a spot at this year's Royal Variety Performance.
The runner-up was Lucy Kay, with Bars and Melody in third place.
Musical theatre actors, Callabro united to become a truly talented vocal group who have gone from strength to strength.
On Saturday night they sang Stars from Les Miserables, the song performed the character Javert in the long-running musical.
David said: ‘It was wonderful, you couldn’t fault it. It was perfection.’
‘Can’t fault, I was thinking “go on boys”,’ Alesha smiled.
‘Faultless performance, you are stunning and you could win this competition,’ Amanda said.
'I have to echo that, You have steel in your eyes when you sing. You are totally focused. The first time I heard this song it was fantastic, well this was a step up,’ Simon shared.
Runner-up Lucy Kay had taken on Nessun Dorma, the song made famous by Luciano Pavarotti, and typically sung by a male opera singer.
‘That was simply superb,’ Alesha said, while Amanda echoed her sentiments: ‘That was pitch perfect, and a brave choice, you were just incredible darling
Simon said: ‘When we first saw you were a shivering wreck, you shone like a diamond tonight, any other year that was a show winner. But what a fantastic way to end the evening’.
Bars and Melody came in third place after performing their own original rap about bullying, by sampling Twista’s Hope and using the verse sung by Faith Evans.
The duo had previously performed the track, but David didn’t mind: ‘Yo, yo, yo, yo - well boys you smashed it tonight, I’m so glad you sung it tonight for us again.’
‘Every time I see you perform I could burst,’ Alesha gushed. ‘You are on such an amazing journey and I think you could win this show.’
Amanda said: ‘It is incredible, you are both exceptionally talented. You have that quiet confidence and it’s not arrogant, you're awkwardness is endearing.’
‘It was just a great performance, it was from the heart and it was real and you meant everything you sang. I hope my little Eric turns out like you,’ Simon said.
Jack Pack cam in fourth place, and were hoping to better the lives of their families by winning the competition.
They sang Nina Simone’s I’m Feeling Good in typical Rat Pack fashion, with a brass band to support and a few modern dance moves.
Another standing ovation from the judges, but David was the last to sit down: ‘It was really joyous, every time the act comes on I think they are going to be the winners, after that I think you could win this thing.’
I feel like I’m at the best concert tonight, I think you guys could do this tonight,’ Alesha enthused.
‘I’m running out of adjectives, you could absolutely win. For years we’ve had Michael Buble for this but I think you’ve just stolen his crown,’ Amanda said.
This was by far the best performance you’ve given in this competition. You’ve got to have swagger, and you had it. An outstanding performance,’ Simon praised.
Fifth placer, Darcy Oake said he was putting it all on the line, as he attempted to escape from a strait jacket, while suspended by his feet to a giant bear trap that will snap shut in 52 seconds if he cannot escape. The time is measured on the big screen, as a fire threatens to burn the rope keeping the bear trap from snapping shut. Struggling, he seemed to make no leeway until the 20 second mark, but with a second to spare he escapes and falls to the floor as the trap snaps shut.
‘It’s really difficult to watch because it was so dramatic, but you could win this on that,’ David said.
My goodness, you get better and better, you have star quality and that presentation was perfect,’ Alesha gushed. ‘I was mesmerised, my heart was racing. It was astonishing and the best thing is that you did take your T-shirt at the end,’ Amanda praised. ‘I like the fact that you are so cool, the production is fantastic, I believe we’re seeing the birth of a star here,’ Simon said.
