Britain's Got Talent series 7

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Britain's Got Talent
Series 7
Hosted by Ant & Dec (ITV)
Stephen Mulhern (ITV2)
Judges David Walliams
Alesha Dixon
Amanda Holden
Simon Cowell
Winner Attraction
Runner-up Jack Carroll
Release
Original network ITV
ITV2 (BGMT)
Original release13 April (2013-04-13) –
8 June 2013 (2013-06-08)
Series chronology
← Previous
Series 6
Next →
Series 8
List of episodes
Judges and Presenter(s) for Britain's Got Talent Series 7
Ashleigh and David Walliams (the voice of Pudsey in the movie) (cropped).JPG
David Walliams
Alesha Dixon at Tup Tup Palace (cropped).jpg
Alesha Dixon
HoldenLondon.jpg
Amanda Holden
Simon Cowell in December 2011.jpg
Simon Cowell
Ant and Dec in Cardiff Bay.jpg
Ant & Dec(ITV1)
Stephen Mulhern.jpg
Stephen Mulhern(ITV2)

The seventh series of British talent competition programme Britain's Got Talent was broadcast on ITV, from 13 April to 8 June 2013; because of England's international friendly with the Republic of Ireland that year, the show took a break on 29 May to avoid clashing with live coverage of the match. Because of the work schedule of Stephen Mulhern, host of Britain's Got More Talent, filmed auditions had to be pushed back to mid-January that year, [1] while no guest judge was brought in despite the absence of Simon Cowell for an audition session. [2] [3] [4] Following the previous series, the programme's format was given a minor amendment - the cash prize offered to winners was reduced to £250,000 from this series onwards.

The seventh series was won by shadow theatre troupe Attraction, the first foreign national participant to win the competition, with comedian Jack Carroll finishing in second place and singing duo Richard & Adam third, During its broadcast, the series averaged around 10.4 million viewers. The programme faced severe criticism from viewers over a number of auditions that were broadcast as part of the sixth series, while production staff had to investigate a breach of security after a protester managed to pelt Cowell with eggs during a live broadcast of a finalist's performance. [5]

Series overview

Following open auditions, the Judges' auditions were held in January and February 2013, within Cardiff, London, Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham. Although filming was planned to begin by 7 January, [6] it was pushed back to 16 January due to Stephen Mulhern's schedule  – as host for Britain's Got More Talent, he would provide feedback and present additional auditions not featured on the main programme, but filming on the original date would have clashed with his involvement for Catchphrase that month. [1] Most of the auditions that took place were uneventful; although Cowell was forced to miss most of the auditions on the second day in Manchester due to illness, production staff opted to proceed with these without bringing in a guest judge to stand in for him. [2]

Of the participants that took part, only forty five made it past this stage and into the five live semi-finals, with nine appearing in each one, and eleven of these acts making it into the live final; the wildcard act chosen by the judges was ventriloquist Steve Hewlett, after he lost out in the Judges' vote in the fifth semi-final. [7] The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this series:

  Winner |   Runner-up |   Finalist
  Semi-finalist | Playing card club A.svg Judges' Wildcard Finalist
ParticipantAge(s) 1 GenrePerformance TypeSemi-finalResult
Aaron Crow44DangerDanger Act1Eliminated
AJ & Chloe17 & 18DanceLatin Dance Duo4Eliminated
Alex Keirl20SingingSinger4Eliminated
Alice Fredenham28SingingSinger2Eliminated
Aliki29SingingSinger5Eliminated
Arisxandra11SingingSinger1Finalist
Asanda 11SingingSinger4Finalist
Attraction 19–40DanceShadow Theatre Group5Winner
Band of Voices27-47SingingVocal Group1Eliminated
Bosom Buddies29 & 48SingingOpera Singing Duo1Eliminated
CEO Dancers 22–24DanceDance Trio5Eliminated
Chasing The Dream19-50SingingTheatre Group4Eliminated
Club Town Freaks25–38SingingVocal Group4Eliminated
Francine Lewis 37ComedyImpressionist4Finalist
Freelusion25–39DanceElectronic Dance Group3Eliminated
Gabz 14Singing / MusicSinger & Pianist2Finalist
Gospel Singers Incognito17–43SingingGospel Choir5Eliminated
J-Unity19Singing / MusicSinging Duo & Guitarist1Eliminated
Jack & Cormac13 & 14Singing / MusicSinging Duo & Guitarist2Eliminated
Jack Carroll 14ComedyStand Up Comedian2Runner-Up
James More24MagicIllusionist4Eliminated
Jordan O'Keefe18Singing / MusicSinger & Guitarist5Finalist
Joseph Hall36DanceDancer3Eliminated
Luminites 18–21Singing / MusicBand3Finalist
Maarty Broekman23Singing / MusicSinger & Keytar Musician5Eliminated
Martin & Marielle32 & 36Acrobatics / DanceAcrobatic Dance Duo2Eliminated
Martin Healey57DanceBallroom Dancer1Eliminated
MC Boy22SingingRapper3Eliminated
McKnasty27MusicDrummer & DJ2Eliminated
MD Dancers14–22DanceDance Group2Eliminated
Meat Diva31 & 27SingingCabaret Singing Duo2Eliminated
Modupe19SingingSinger2Eliminated
Philip Green21ComedyImpressionist1Eliminated
Poppin'Ron21DanceBodypopper4Eliminated
Pre-Skool5–8DanceDance Group3Finalist
Richard & Adam 19 & 22SingingOpera Singing Duo1Third Place
Robbie Kennedy22Singing / MusicSinger & Guitarist3Eliminated
Rob's Duelling Pianos 2 55MusicPianist5Eliminated
Rosie O'Sullivan19SingingSinger3Eliminated
Shockarellas12–17DanceDance Group4Eliminated
Steve Hewlett Playing card club A.svg 37ComedyVentriloquist5Finalist
Stevie Pink45MagicIllusionist3Eliminated
The Glambassadors21–36DanceDance Group5Eliminated
Thomas Bounce16VarietyJuggler3Eliminated
Youth Creation7–14DanceDance Group1Eliminated

Semi-finals summary

Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Buzzed out | Crystal Clear app clean.svg Judges' vote |   Won the public vote
  Won the judges' vote |   Lost the judges' vote |   Eliminated

Semi-final 1 (27 May)

Semi-FinalistOrderPerformance TypeBuzzes and Judges' VotePercentageResult [9]
CowellHoldenDixonWalliams
Martin Healey1Ballroom Dancer0.1%9th - Eliminated
Band of Voices2Vocal Group1.9%6th - Eliminated
Youth Creation3Dance Group Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 7.2%3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
J-Unity4Singing Duo & Guitarist1.5%7th - Eliminated
Bosom Buddies5Opera Singing Duo Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 1.0%8th - Eliminated
Philip Green6Impressionist3.3%5th - Eliminated
Arisxandra7Singer Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 13.4%2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Aaron Crow8Danger Act5.6%4th - Eliminated
Richard & Adam9Opera Singing Duo66.0%1st (Won Public vote)

Semi-final 2 (28 May)

Semi-FinalistOrderPerformance TypeBuzzes and Judges' VotePercentageResult [9]
CowellHoldenDixonWalliams
Martin & Marielle1Acrobatic Dance Duo0.6%8th - Eliminated
McKnasty2DJ & Drummer2.7%5th - Eliminated
Jack & Cormac3Singing Duo & Guitarist15.0%3rd (Lost Judges' vote)
Modupe4Singer Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 0.5%9th - Eliminated
Meat Diva5Cabaret Singing Duo1.5%7th - Eliminated
MD6Dance Group2.3%6th - Eliminated
Alice Fredenham7Singer12.3%4th - Eliminated
Jack Carroll8Stand Up Comedian42.5%1st (Won Public Vote)
Gabz9Singer & Pianist 3 Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 22.6%2nd (Won Judges' vote)
  • ^3 Cowell did not cast his vote due to the majority support for Gabz from the other judges, but admitted that his voting intention would have been for this semi-finalist.

Semi-final 3 (30 May)

Semi-FinalistOrderPerformance TypeBuzzes and Judges' VotePercentageResult [9]
CowellHoldenDixonWalliams
Freelusion1Electronic Dance Group Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 0.9%7th - Eliminated
Robbie Kennedy2Singer & Guitarist12.6%5th - Eliminated
Stevie Pink3Illusionist Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 0.7%8th - Eliminated
Pre-Skool4Dance Group Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 16.9%2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Thomas Bounce5Juggler Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 0.6%9th - Eliminated
Rosie O'Sullivan6Singer15.4%4th - Eliminated
Joseph Hall7Dancer Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 16.4%3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
MC Boy8Rapper Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 4 0.9%6th - Eliminated
Luminites9Band35.6%1st (Won Public vote)
  • ^3 Cowell pressed Holden's buzzer for MC Boy, though it was never retracted during the comments.

Semi-final 4 (31 May)

Semi-FinalistOrderPerformance TypeBuzzes and Judges' VotePercentageResult [9]
CowellHoldenDixonWalliams
Club Town Freaks1Vocal Group1.3%9th - Eliminated
Alex Keirl2Singer Crystal Clear app clean.svg 19.4%3rd (Lost Judges' vote)
Shockarellas3Dance Group3.4%6th - Eliminated
Poppin'Ron4Bodypopper Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 2.1%8th - Eliminated
James More5Illusionist14.3%4th - Eliminated
Chasing The Dream6Theatre Group Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 2.2%7th - Eliminated
Francine Lewis7Impressionist23.2%1st (Won Public vote)
Asanda8Singer Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 21.4%2nd (Won Judges' vote)
AJ & Chloe9Latin Dance Duo12.7%5th - Eliminated

Semi-final 5 (1 June)

ArtistOrderPerformance TypeBuzzes and Judges' VotePercentageResult [9]
CowellHoldenDixonWalliams
CEO Dancers1Dance Trio1.2%7th - Eliminated
Aliki2Singer6.6%4th - Eliminated
The Glambassadors3Dance Group1.1%8th - Eliminated
Steve Hewlett 4 4Ventriloquist Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 12.0%3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
Rob's Duelling Pianos5Pianist Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 0.4%9th - Eliminated
Maarty Broekman6Singer & Keytar Musician Crystal Clear action button cancel.svg 2.0%6th - Eliminated
Gospel Singers Incognito7Gospel Choir2.5%5th - Eliminated
Jordan O'Keefe8Singer & Guitarist Crystal Clear app clean.svg Crystal Clear app clean.svg 15.1%2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Attraction9Shadow Theatre Group59.1%1st (Won Public vote)
  • ^4 Steve Hewlett was later sent through to the final as the judges wildcard.

Final (8 June)

  Winner |   Runner-up
FinalistOrderPerformance TypePercentageFinished [9]
Pre-Skool1Dance Group2.8%9th
Asanda2Singer1.2%11th
Gabz3Singer & Pianist3.6%7th
Steve Hewlett4Ventriloquist14.7%4th
Jordan O'Keefe5Singer & Guitarist3.7%6th
Arisxandra6Singer2.9%8th
Francine Lewis7Impressionist2.0%10th
Richard & Adam8Opera Singing Duo15.4%3rd
Jack Carroll9Stand Up Comedian20.1%2nd
Luminites10Band6.8%5th
Attraction11Shadow Theatre Group27.0%1st

Ratings

EpisodeDateTotal ITV viewers (millions) [16] Weekly rank [16] Share (%)
Auditions 113 April12.13136.9 [17]
Auditions 220 April11.86143.9 [18]
Auditions 327 April11.08143.9 [19]
Auditions 44 May11.59145.0 [20]
Auditions 511 May12.36145.2 [21]
Auditions 618 May10.88138.1 [22]
Auditions 726 May9.74338.0 [23]
Semi-final 127 May11.48141.5 [24]
Semi-final 1 results9.271031.4 [24]
Semi-final 228 May10.20636.5 [25]
Semi-final 2 results8.391428.5 [25]
Semi-final 330 May9.76837.5 [26]
Semi-final 3 results8.511332.3 [26]
Semi-final 431 May9.98737.5 [27]
Semi-final 4 results8.711232.7 [27]
Semi-final 51 June9.74941.9 [28]
Semi-final 5 results9.041132.8 [28]
Live final8 June12.85148.9 [29]

Criticism & incidents

Unsuitable, and "sexualised" auditions

The seventh series faced criticism from viewers, covering two sets of complaints regarding auditions that were conducted in the 2013 contest. The first set concerned the nature of auditions made by Scarlet Cuffs, Keri Graham and Kelly Fox, that were deemed unsuitable for a family-orientated programme and for broadcast before the 9pm watershed - both Cuffs and Graham conducted a provocative striptease as part of their auditions, while Fox used lyrics that were considered vulgar. Ofcom investigated the editing of the auditions by the striptease acts, and ruled that while Graham's had been carefully censored to an acceptable level, [30] they found in contrast that censoring of Cuffs' audition was insufficient and that the footage breached broadcasting codes in regards to protecting children from unsuitable content, with it made clear that the act should not have been shown. [31] [32] Fox refuted criticism on her performance, [33] yet a member of the National Association of Head Teachers raised questions over the "morality" of allowing the audition footage to be shown. [34]

The second set focused on the audition of two young children, Arisxandra Libantino, and Asanda, who used songs in their performances that were deemed inappropriate for their age - Libantino's performance involved singing Jennifer Hudson's "One Night Only", [30] while Asanda's involved the singing of Rihanna's "Diamonds" alongside a provocative dance routine. [35] The release of the footage by ITV raised questions from Vivienne Pattison, director of Mediawatch UK, over the programme's portrayal of children, deeming the auditions as effectively "sexualising children" on television. [30]

Cowell's "egg attack" in final

Security arrangements for the programme came under questioning during the latter half of the series, after a protester managed to infiltrate the live finals and conduct a protest against both miming on live television shows and Simon Cowell's influence in the music industry. The programme had to make clear that the protester, Natalie Holt, was not conducting a publicity stunt, when she took to the stage during the performance of finalists Richard & Adam in order to throw eggs at Cowell. [36] [37] The investigation into the breach found that Holt managed not only to circumvent security processes by posing as a backing musician for the finalists, but was able to smuggle in the eggs due to inadequate examinations of her possessions. The motive for her protest was later revealed to be in part over her failure to secure a place during the 2012 contest, when she auditioned with her classical band. [36]

References

  1. 1 2 Fletcher, Alex (13 December 2012). "'Britain's Got Talent' 2013 judge audition dates revealed". Digital Spy .
  2. 1 2 Harmsworth, Andrei (3 February 2013). "Britain's Got Talent judges taunt poorly no-show Simon Cowell". Metro .
  3. ↑ Bassett, Sean (26 July 2012). "Alesha Dixon confirms she will be back for Britain's Got Talent 2013". Unreality TV. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.
  4. ↑ Fletcher, Alex (13 December 2012). "Simon Cowell returns to 'Britain's Got Talent': 'I want a global star'". Digital Spy .
  5. ↑ Ensor, Josie (9 June 2013). "Britain's Got Talent: Woman storms the stage and pelts Simon Cowell with Eggs". The Daily Telegraph . Telegraph Media Group. Archived from the original on 9 June 2013.
  6. ↑ Sperling, Daniel (4 September 2012). "Stephen Mulhern confirms 'Britain's Got More Talent' return". Digital Spy .
  7. ↑ McGarry, Lisa (4 June 2013). "Bruce Forsyth wants to manage Steve Hewlett – Britain's Got Talent judges argue but pick 'surprising' wildcard!". Unreality TV. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  8. ↑ Goulding, Ellie (27 May 2013). "Big day today. Heading down to rehearsals for Britain's Got Talent soon for the show tonight. #BGT". Twitter.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Revealed: How you voted". ITV . 9 June 2013. Archived from the original on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  10. ↑ Lopez, Jennifer (28 May 2013). "Up early ... Are u ready London!!! Excited about my performance tonight. Who's tuning in? #BritainsGotTalent #LIVEITUP #gonnabefun #jetlag :)". Twitter.
  11. ↑ "OH YEAH! The awesome @ddlovato will be joining us live tonight! #BOOM #DemisGotTalent #BGT". Twitter. 30 May 2013.
  12. ↑ "Watch Olly on Britain's Got Talent". ollymurs.com. 22 May 2013. Archived from the original on 16 June 2013.
  13. ↑ "In dance rehearsals today for my @GotTalent performance next Saturday. All I can say is #zombie". Twitter. 24 May 2013.
  14. ↑ Duff, Seamus (27 May 2013). "Gangnam style to doggy style: Will Psy perform with former BGT champ Pudsey?". Metro . Associated Newspapers.
  15. ↑ Rigby, Sam (31 May 2013). "Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran 'to perform on Britain's Got Talent final'". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  16. 1 2 "Weekly Top 30 Programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board . Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  17. ↑ Hilton, Beth (14 April 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' makes triumphant return to ITV with 9.35m". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  18. ↑ Hilton, Beth (21 April 2013). "'The Voice' UK ratings continue to grow with 7.9m". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  19. ↑ Hilton, Beth (28 April 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' tops Saturday night ratings". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  20. ↑ Hilton, Beth (5 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' tops Saturday ratings with 9.51m". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  21. ↑ Hilton, Beth (12 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' scores series high of 10.54m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  22. ↑ Hilton, Beth (19 May 2013). "Eurovision Song Contest seen by 7.7m on BBC One". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  23. ↑ Eames, Tom (27 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' wins Sunday with 8.14m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  24. 1 2 Eames, Tom (28 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' first live semi-final climbs to 9.9m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  25. 1 2 Eames, Tom (29 May 2013). "'The Apprentice' loses 900,000 viewers on Tuesday". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  26. 1 2 Eames, Tom (31 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' third semi-final attracts 8.5m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  27. 1 2 Hilton, Beth (1 June 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' latest semi-final scores 8m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  28. 1 2 Hilton, Beth (2 June 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' brings 8.13m to ITV for last semi-final". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  29. ↑ Hilton, Beth (9 June 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' final watched by 10.6m on ITV". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK.
  30. 1 2 3 McGarry, Lisa (15 April 2013). "Britain's Got Talent 2013: Bosses defend Arisxandra Libantino & Keri Graham over 'inappropriate' claims". Unreality TV. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014.
  31. ↑ Nissim, Mayer (9 September 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' spinoff criticised by Ofcom for naked dancing". Digital Spy . Hearst Magazines UK . Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  32. ↑ "It's a bum rap: regulator Ofcom ticks off ITV2". Evening Standard . 9 September 2013. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  33. ↑ Shales, Mark (22 May 2013). "Kiss my ass! Rochdale's Britain's Got Talent grandmother Kelly Fox defends controversial audition song". Mancunian Matters.
  34. ↑ Michael Hogan (31 May 2017). "Britain's Got Talent: the biggest controversies of all time". www.telegraph.co.uk.
  35. ↑ McKnight, Jenni (29 April 2013). "Britain's Got Talent contestant Asanda Jezile shocks viewers with 'sexualised' Rihanna performance". Metro . Associated Newspapers.
  36. 1 2 Watts, Halina; Tonks, Owen (9 June 2013). "Natalie Holt apologises for throwing eggs". Daily Mirror . Trinity Mirror.
  37. ↑ Simons, Jake Wallis (9 June 2013). "Violinist reveals motivation behind Simon Cowell egg attack". The Daily Telegraph . Telegraph Media Group.
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