Britain’s Got Talent 2019 continued tonight with a masked magician, a thrill-seeking stuntman – and a surprise appearance from none other than Susan Boyle.
It’s hard to believe, but this year marks a DECADE since Susan Boyle put BGT on the map with her iconic audition, proving you can never judge a book by its cover.
To celebrate the occasion, she returned to the ITV talent contest tonight, reprising her signature track ‘I Dreamed A Dream’.
Soon it was back to business, however, as judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams resumed their search for the next big thing.
Episode two featured some bonkers try-outs from an energetic tambourinist, a hobby horse enthusiast and an Aussie Sheila.
Among the madness, one hopeful cut through Simon’s love-hate relationship with comedians to earn his Golden Buzzer.
Catch up with the latest results right here…
The Yeses
Gonzo (4 yeses) – Ten years on, Susan is still inspiring hopefuls from around the world to come to Britain’s Got Talent hoping for their own ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ moment. Gonzo travelled all the way from Japan to give it a shot, and while he didn’t quite live up to the songstress, his ‘extreme tambourine’ made for a pretty entertaining two minutes. “You are a sex machine Gonzo,” cooed David. “If you’re not the next Susan Boyle, there’s no justice!” Alesha added: “The way you kept whacking your face, that’s when you sold it to me!”
Kerr James (4 yeses) – Like SuBo, Kerr comes from Scotland, and he cites her as an inspiration – even though he’d only have been two years old when she appeared on BGT in 2009. Now 12, the Glaswegian schoolboy has a huge ambition to be the next Freddie Mercury, and he kicked off his musical journey by stunning the audience with a cover of ‘Try A Little Tenderness’. “He sounds so much older,” remarked one spectator. “That took my breath away!” exclaimed Ant from the sidelines. His performing techniques also impressed the judges, with David comparing him to the Queen legend. “Your whole body was in that song,” noted Amanda.
X (4 yeses) – When Ant and Dec promised us one of the spookiest acts ever, they weren’t kidding. The panel was baffled when a figure clad in a black hood and a white face mask took to the stage and remained silent during Simon’s questioning. The mysterious magician, known only as ‘X’, set out to demonstrate how powerful human connections can be by using the Geordie hosts as test subjects. X repeatedly touched Ant, while an oblivious Dec felt the pokes. The duo then somehow unwittingly drew identical patterns depicting the number 1989 – the year their legendary partnership was formed. Alesha said the tricks “sent chills through” her, while Simon praised the “emotional” aspect of the performance.
Guy First (4 yeses) – Musician Guy loves performing, so he came to Britain’s Got Talent from his native Israel aiming to make it on the global stage. What he kept quiet was that his instrument is his own hands – which he uses to make what can only be described as fart sounds. His, er, unique versions of ‘Take On Me’, ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ left David in stitches, and the audience was just as thrilled, getting on their feet in applause. “It’s so stupid but so much fun!” the comic smiled. “I think my favourite part was your face. You were in it, you were feeling it!” observed Alesha. Meanwhile, Simon predicted Guy would be one of his son Eric’s favourite acts.
Jonathan Goodwin (4 yeses) – A stunt performer since the age of seven, Jonathan says his act involves “anything your mum told you not to do when you were a kid”. The professional daredevil rated his act at ten on the danger scale, and he wasn’t wrong, as the crowd soon witnessed him attempt a straitjacket escape – while on FIRE. Kicking Harry Houdini’s famous stunt up a notch, he was completely doused in fuel and suspended from his ankles. The judges were aghast when he literally went up in flames, with Amanda remarking: “You can feel the heat.” Jon successfully managed to free himself, with the audience erupting in cheers as he hosed himself with a fire extinguisher. “I’ve never seen anything like that,” gapsed Dec. “I can see why you’re bald!” joked Alesha. “It was absolutely terrifying. You said it was a ten, I’m gonna call that an eleven,” commented Simon.
Sheila Simmonds (3 yeses, 1 no) – Bingo-calling ‘busy lady’ Sheila, who hails from Woolloomooloo in Australia, got the crowd chuckling from the get-go by throwing Simon a Wether’s Original “to take the edge off”. With two backing dancers, she then broke out in to a comedy song, which included this delightful dig: “I love Alesha, she was in Mis-Teeq, she had a solo career that lasted a week!” The lady herself took it in good humour, reacting: “Even though you insulted me, I still love you!” A rather grumpy-looking Simon admitted he “didn’t like it” and gave Sheila a no – but the other three judges put Sheila through to the shortlist, with Amanda even claiming the drag act as her “favourite”.
The Nos
Greg and Mr Bones (4 nos) – Budding ventriloquist Greg had a dream of gracing the Royal Variety Performance, but it soon appeared as dead as his skeleton puppet, Mr Bones. The public debut of his act got off to a bad start when Amanda noticed his lips moving, and only got worse when Mr Bones started singing ‘Dear Darlin’ – which Greg eventually took over in his own voice. Unsure of what exactly he was trying to do, all four judges soon buzzed him off. “Why? Why is he a skeleton? Why are you singing an Olly Murs song? None of it made any sense!” wondered David, while Simon branded Greg “the worst ventriloquist I think we’ve ever had”.
VJ Clarke (4 nos) – The judges were excited when crew started setting up hurdles, with Amanda predicting a shetland pony would turn up, while Simon noted that they “need a great animal act”. Unfortunately, all they got this time was VJ galloping around stage on her not-so-impressive steed – a hobby horse. Needless to say, all four buzzers were soon pressed. “I’m actually really, really upset. You don’t come on and raise people’s expectations like that!” smirked Simon. “It’s a neigh from me,” added Amanda. David succinctly dismissed the try-out as “horse s**t”.
Igor Outkine (2 yeses, 2 nos) – Igor was the first act of the series to properly divide the judges. When Simon asked whether anyone had become a star playing his instrument of choice, the electronic accordion, Igor boldly proclaimed: “It’s gonna be me.” However, the Russian musician’s covers of ‘I Feel Good’ and ‘Tainted Love’ failed to win over the reluctant Syco boss, who hit his buzzer. “That is one of those instruments, to me, that never should have been invented. My idea of hell,” he sniped. David and Amanda did give Igor their backing, but Alesha’s no vote denied him a shot at the live shows.
The Golden Buzzer
Kojo Anim (Simon’s Golden Buzzer) – While Sheila may have failed to tickle Simon’s funny bone, the BGT boss proved he does have a sense of humour when Kojo followed her on stage. Alesha instantly recognised the comedian, who has spent his two-decade career opening for other acts and mentoring young comics. Now, with encouragement from his fiancée, he is looking to claim the spotlight and “make the world laugh”.
Kojo shared his frustrations with the lack of cashiers in banks and how they use microphones to communicate with people right in front of them, and gave his twisted take on taxi fares. The audience ate up his every word, rewarding him with a standing ovation – and Simon went a step further by hitting the Golden Buzzer, sending Kojo straight to the semi-finals. “I don’t really like comedians on this show… but I love you,” he teased. “What was quite amazing was, I felt you were nervous, then I could see the audience react to you, and you react to them.”
Which contestant from episode two is your favourite? Cast a vote in our poll below…
Britain’s Got Talent continues next Saturday night at 8.00pm on ITV.
Stephen Mulhern is also back with spin-off Britain’s Got More Talent, airing every week after the main show on ITV2.
