The Britain’s Got Talent 2019 judges witnessed a surprise marriage proposal and a touching performance from a Grenfell survivor in the seventh week of try-outs.
Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams were at the heart of the action again tonight as the ITV show welcomed even more magicians.
One duo’s telepathy illusion stunned Simon, while a teenage trickster frightened Amanda by sawing her in half with a power tool.
Elsewhere, a dance psychologist gave the panel a lecture in movement – but it was a pair of eleven-year-old best friends that truly impressed with their routine.
Here’s our full round-up of what happened in the penultimate auditions episode…
Michael Sandwick (2 yeses) – Michael proved himself to be a jack of all trades with a three-part performance that began with him singing ‘Gonna Build a Mountain’, before he was joined by a partner for a ballroom dance. As a choir continued the song, he then stripped to his underwear and twirled through the air in an impressive pole dance. Despite his jam-packed display, however, Simon and Alesha found themselves bored and hit their buzzers. “Genuinely at one point I thought I was in a nightmare,” sighed Simon, with his head in his hands. Amanda offered some praise, saying: “I love it when people come up with these ideas!” ITV says Michael only got two yeses, which would mean he fell short of the next round, although David did try voting ‘yes’ on Simon’s behalf.
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Dr Dance (3 yeses) – Reality TV addicts will likely know Peter Lovatt, a.k.a. Dr Dance, from his frequent appearances on Big Brother’s Bit On The Side. With that show no longer on air (save us Netflix!), the ‘dance psychologist’ has now turned to BGT in his efforts to get the nation moving. To Peter’s credit, he had the entire audience on their feet with him – but Simon wasn’t feeling it, and as David chased him around the desk, he hit both of their buzzers. “I think it’s a wonderful message that you’ve got, and it helps all of us,” the comedian smirked. “It’s just a shame that there are grumpy people that are not receptive to this whatsoever!” The Syco boss was dumbfounded as the other three judges gave Peter their approval, sending him through to the next round.
Truro Cathedral Choir (3 yeses) – One area BGT has been lacking in so far is choirs, but the red-robed Cornwall choristers from Truro Cathedral have stepped in to fill the gap, hoping to make “something traditional” part of the talent contest’s success in bringing variety back to the mainstream. They demonstrated their heavenly voices with a piano rendition of Elton John’s Lion King classic ‘Can You Feel The Love Tonight’, which won a standing ovation from the audience. “That was absolutely stunning, beautiful from the first note to the last,” commented David. “You created the most beautiful sound. It had purity, it was delicate, and it had the ability to make everyone feel calm,” reviewed Alesha. “It was beautifully arranged, the harmonising was gorgeous,” added Amanda.
Mind2Mind (4 yeses) – Aptly-named couple Mind2Mind, a.k.a. James and Marina, claim that anybody can engage in the art of telepathy “with the right focus”. After Marina identified items from Amanda’s handbag while blindfolded, the new Heart FM breakfast host secretly picked Italy from a randomised list of countries. The illusionists helped her transmit that thought to Simon, who was amazed that he ended up writing the same nation down on his board. “I’m in total awe of your power,” said David. “You’ve done a great job when everybody’s scratching their head wondering how you did it,” noted Alesha. “I think the act and your chemistry felt very mysterious and spooky, I don’t know how you did that,” added Amanda.
Tony Rudd (4 yeses) – This year’s series now has its obligatory comedy impersonator in Tony, who employed various household objects as visual props to bring his impressions to life. He used a black bucket as a Darth Vader helmet, lettuce leaves as Yoda ears and a blue plastic bag for Marge Simpson’s hair, before pulling his yellow T-shirt over his head to become one of Despicable Me’s famous Minions. “There’s only one way to judge comedy, is it funny or not, and that was brilliant,” opined David. “It was original, I knew who the people were, I like you, this is great,” summed up Simon. Amanda, meanwhile, predicted that Tony will inspire dads around the country to have a go at mimicry.
Jacob Jones (4 yeses) – Jacob likely wouldn’t have made it on to the London Palladium stage if it wasn’t for his girlfriend Faye, who entered him for BGT without his knowledge! The Surrey barber explained that he “wasn’t as confident” in his abilities, having never previously sung at a “high scale”. Jacob faced a setback when Simon interrupted his performance of ‘You Are So Beautiful’, complaining about the “rasp” in his vocals. The music mogul was more satisifed with his second attempt, saying he had a “great voice”. In fact, it went so well that after the judges unanimously voted him through, Jacob invited Faye on stage and proposed to her in front of the cameras and the cheering crowd. Fortunately, she gave him that all-important fifth yes!
Dan Rhodes (4 yeses) – The latest competitor in this year’s crowded field of magic, youngster Dan had what he felt was just the trick to help him stand out – even claiming it had never been done before on British television. He secured Amanda in a box of his own design, and brought out a power tool – at which point Simon pressed his buzzer. The 15-year-old seemingly used the electric saw to cut Amanda in half, and jokingly only agreed to put her back together after she gave him a yes. Simon ended up retracting his X, claiming: “I thought by buzzing, things would go wrong, but that didn’t work!” He then offered Dan some praise: “You’ve got a little bit of showmanship haven’t you, you’re very confident. It did surprise me at the end.”
Libby and Charlie (4 yeses) – Libby may be the self-proclaimed boss of this 11-year-old dance duo, but Charlie already has the £250,000 prize fund earmarked for a trip to the exotic island of Bora Bora. The best friends’ perfectly-synchronised routine, set to Christina Perri’s ‘A Thousand Years’, got them one step closer to that dream holiday. “You to have just got it, you weren’t a step out of place. It was just perfect. I was literally looking for a fault, and I couldn’t find one,” said Alesha. “You’re even better dancers than I am,” smirked David. “I don’t love this kind of dancing, but I thought your choice of song, obvious friendship, sense of fun… it was actually one of my favourite dance performances,” reviewed Simon.
Leanne Mya (4 yeses) – A survivor of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, Leanne battled through severe nerves to reach her audition, explaining that the idea of being on stage “scares” her. However, she is motivated by her desire to teach her young son to conquer his fears. Leanne eventually made it through her piano-backed cover of Sam Smith’s ‘Lay Me Down’ with what Amanda described as a “quiet confidence”. “It’s very rare that you see a singer committed to meaning every single word they sing. You really did something extraordinary today,” observed David. “I’m surprised every year at how many amazing people we meet on this show,” said Simon, who masterminded the chart-topping Grenfell charity single. “I love things that make a difference. The song, for me, took on a whole different meaning.”
Vote for your favourite act from episode seven in our weekly poll below!
Britain’s Got Talent 2019 continues next Saturday at 8.00pm on ITV with the final auditions and Deliberation Day, when the judges will decide which acts progress to the live shows.
As always, Britain’s Got More Talent with Stephen Mulhern airs straight after the main show on ITV2.
