Britain's Got Talent (series 3)

The third series of Britain's Got Talent, a British talent competition series, began broadcasting in the UK during 2009, from 11 April to 30 May on ITV. Prior to production taking place, producers originally intended to expand the judging panel to include a fourth judge, but later dropped this idea; the intended newcomer, Kelly Brook,[1][2] was credited as a guest judge for her involvement in a session of auditions.[3][4] Apart from this, no major changes took place with the programme.

Britain's Got Talent
Series 3
Broadcast from11 April –
30 May 2009
JudgesSimon Cowell
Amanda Holden
Piers Morgan
Kelly Brook (guest)
Presenter(s)Anthony McPartlin (ITV)
Declan Donnelly (ITV)
Co-presenter(s)Stephen Mulhern (ITV2)
BroadcasterITV
ITV2 (BGMT)
Winner
Diversity
OriginDagenham, England
Genre(s)Street Dance Troupe
Runner-up
Susan Boyle

The third series was won by street dance troupe Diversity, with singer Susan Boyle finishing in second place, and saxophonist Julian Smith placing third. During its broadcast, the series averaged around 13.3 million viewers, with the figures partly helped by the notable performances of Boyle during her time in on the show.[5] Boyle's performance on the third series contributed predominately to the formation of her global singing career, with her auditions considered as one of the most notable moments in the programme's history.[6] The programme face criticism during the third series for airing an unsuitable performance conducted in an audition, while Boyle's well-being became a major concern for producers following the final.

Series overview
Brook was initially intended as a fourth judge, before producers decided against this.

Following open auditions held the previous year, the Judges' auditions took place across January and February 2009, within Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham, London and Cardiff. When the auditions were being overseen, the producers decided to expand the judging panel by adding a fourth judge to proceedings, and thus they recruited Kelly Brook as their choice for this role.[1] The alteration to the panel was made prior to the Manchester auditions, but within six days after it was introduced, the producers deemed it an over-complication to the show's format and dropped it. As a result, Brook, while receiving her fee for her involvement in the third series, was labelled as a guest judge when it began broadcasting.[3]

This series is notable for launching the career of Susan Boyle, despite the singer being only a runner-up by the end of the competition. Her performances during this series made her internationally famous, with her audition performance, involving her rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" from the musical Les Misérables, being later posted to YouTube and earning around 100 million views within five days of its posting.[7][8][9][10][11][12]

Of the participants that took part, only forty made it past this stage and into the five live semi-finals,[13] with eight appearing in each one, and ten of these acts making it into the live final. The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this series:

  Winner |   Finalist
  Runner-up |   Third place
  Semi-finalist
Participant Age(s) 1 Genre Act From Semi-Final Result
2 Grand 76, 12 Singing Grandfather & Granddaughter Duet Doncaster, South Yorkshire 4 Finalist
Aidan Davis 12 Dance Street Dancer Birmingham 5 Finalist
Ben and Becky 18, 16 Dance Ballroom Dancers Essex 3 Eliminated
Brit Chix 23–26 Music Rock Band Boston, Lincolnshire 4 Eliminated
Callum Francis 12 Music Musical Theatre Performer Hertfordshire 4 Eliminated
Darth Jackson 37 Dance Darth Vader & Michael Jackson Impersonator Birmingham 1 Eliminated
DCD Seniors 14–21 Dance Dance Troupe Cardiff 5 Eliminated
Diversity 13–25 Dance Street Dance Troupe London 1 Winner
DJ Talent 30 Singing Rapper London 2 Eliminated
Fabia Cerra 35 Dance / Variety Burlesque Dancer Oxford 4 Eliminated
Faces of Disco 24, 30 Comedy / Dance Comic Dancers London 1 Eliminated
Flawless 20–31 Dance Street Dance Troupe London 2 Finalist
Floral High Notes 43, 46 Singing / Variety Opera Singer & Flower Arranger Stockport, Greater Manchester 3 Eliminated
Fred Bowers 73 Dance Break Dancing Pensioner Loughborough, Leicestershire 4 Eliminated
Gareth Oliver 28 Comedy Ventriloquist Calderdale, West Yorkshire 2 Eliminated
Good Evans 6–42 Singing Singing Family Coventry, West Midlands 5 Eliminated
Greg Pritchard 24 Singing Countertenor & Male Soprano Usk, Monmouthshire 5 Eliminated
Harmony 14, 16 Music / Singing Musical Theatre Performers Essex 3 Eliminated
Hollie Steel 10 Singing Singer Accrington, Lancashire 5 Finalist
Hot Honeyz 16–25 Dance Dancers Maidstone, Kent 2 Eliminated
Jackie Prescott and Tippy Toes 40, 2 2 Animals / Dance Dog Dancing Act Oxford 4 Eliminated
Jamie Pugh 38 Singing Singer Cardiff 2 Eliminated
Julia Naidenko 24 Dance Belly Dancer London (originally Latvia) 1 Eliminated
Julian Smith 40 Music Saxophonist Halesowen, West Midlands 4 Third place
Kay Oresanya 31 Singing / Variety Human "Saxophonist" Glasgow (originally Nigeria) 3 Eliminated
Luke Clements 36 Variety Fruit Juggler Cornwall 5 Eliminated
Martin "Gos" Matcham 35 Singing / Music Singer & Guitarist Dover, Kent 5 Eliminated
MD Showgroup 9–17 Dance Street Dance Group Liverpool 3 Eliminated
Merlin Cadogan 35 Danger Escapologist Devon 2 Eliminated
Natalie Okri 10 Singing Singer London 1 Eliminated
Nick Hell 26 Danger Freak Show Stunt Performer Sunderland, Tyne and Wear 1 Eliminated
Peter Coghlan 48 Variety Drag Act Stafford, West Midlands 2 Eliminated
Shaheen Jafargholi 12 Singing Singer Swansea 3 Finalist
Shaun Smith 17 Singing Singer Lichfield, Staffordshire 2 Finalist
Stavros Flatley 13, 40 Comedy / Dance Comic Dancers London (originally Cyprus) 3 Finalist
Sue Son 24 Music Electric Violinist London 1 Eliminated
Sugarfree 16–23 Dance Street dancers Gravesend, Kent 4 Eliminated
Susan Boyle 48 Singing Singer Blackburn, West Lothian 1 Runner-up
The Barrow Boys 18–27 Dance / Variety Wheelbarrow Dancers Devon 3 Eliminated
The Dreambears 29–34 Comedy / Dance Comic Dancers London 5 Eliminated
  • ^1 Ages denoted in this column pertain to those of the respective participant(s) for their final performance for this series.
  • ^2 The latter value pertains to the age of the dog, as disclosed by its owner.

Semi-final summary
Buzzed out | Judges' vote |   Advanced - Public Vote
  Advanced - Judges' Vote |   Eliminated - Judges' Vote |   Eliminated

Semi-final 1 (24 May)
Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [14]
Cowell Holden Morgan
Diversity 1 Street Dance Group Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Sue Son 2 Electric Violinist Eliminated
Darth Jackson 3 Darth Vader & Michael Jackson Impersonator Eliminated
Natalie Okri 4 Singer Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Julia Naidenko 5 Belly Dancer Eliminated
Nick Hell 6 Freak Show Stunt Performer Eliminated
Faces of Disco 7 Comic Dancers Eliminated
Susan Boyle 8 Singer Advanced (Won Public Vote)

Semi-final 2 (25 May)
Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [14]
Cowell Holden Morgan
DJ Talent 1 Rapper Eliminated
Merlin Cadogan 2 Escapologist Eliminated
Hot Honeyz 3 Dancers Eliminated
Jamie Pugh 4 Singer Eliminated
Peter Coghlan 5 Drag Act Eliminated
Gareth Oliver 6 Ventriloquist Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Shaun Smith 7 Singer Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Flawless 8 Street Dance Troupe Advanced (Won Public Vote)

Semi-final 3 (26 May)
Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [14]
Cowell Holden Morgan
Harmony 1 Musical Theatre Performers Eliminated
Kay Oresanya 2 Human "Saxophonist" Eliminated
Ben and Becky 3 Ballroom Dancers Eliminated
Shaheen Jafargholi 4 Singer Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
The Barrow Boys 5 Wheelbarrow Dancers Eliminated
MD Showgroup 6 Street Dance Group Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Floral High Notes 7 Opera Singer & Flower Arranger Eliminated
Stavros Flatley 8 Comic Dancers Advanced (Won Public Vote)

Semi-final 4 (28 May)
Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [14]
Cowell Holden Morgan
Sugar Free 1 Street Dancers Eliminated
Jackie Prescott and Tippy Toes 2 Dancing Dog Act Eliminated
Callum Francis 3 Musical Theatre Performer Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)
Fred Bowers 4 Breakdancer Eliminated
Brit Chix 5 Rock Band Eliminated
Julian Smith 6 Saxophonist Advanced (Won Public Vote)
2 Grand 7 Grandfather & Granddaughter Duet Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Fabia Cerra 8 Burlesque Dancer Eliminated

Semi-final 5 (29 May)
Semi-Finalist Order Act Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [14]
Cowell Holden Morgan
The Dreambears 1 Comic Dancers Eliminated
Good Evans 2 Singing Family Eliminated
Luke Clements 3 Fruit Juggler Eliminated
Hollie Steel 4 Singer Advanced (Won Judges' Vote)
Martin Matcham 5 Singer & Guitarist Eliminated
Aidan Davis 6 Dancer Advanced (Won Public Vote)
DCD Seniors 7 Dance Troupe Eliminated
Greg Pritchard 8 Countertenor & Male Soprano Eliminated (Lost Judges' Vote)

Final (30 May)
  Winner |   Runner-up |   3rd place
Finalist Order Act Result [14]
Flawless 1 Dance Troupe 8th
Shaheen Jafargholi 2 Singer 6th
Aidan Davis 3 Street dancer 5th
2 Grand 4 Grandfather & Granddaughter Duet 10th
Hollie Steel 5 Singer 7th
Stavros Flatley 6 Comic Dancers 4th
Shaun Smith 7 Singer 9th
Susan Boyle 8 Singer 2nd
Diversity 9 Dance Group 1st
Julian Smith 10 Saxophonist 3rd

Ratings
Main article: List of Britain's Got Talent episodes
Episode Date Official ratings
(millions) [15]		 Weekly rank [15] Share
Auditions 1 11 April 11.21 1 45.1% [16]
Auditions 2 18 April 12.95 1 50.6% [17]
Auditions 3 25 April 13.21 1 52.3% [18]
Auditions 4 2 May 11.30 1 47.2% [19]
Auditions 5 9 May 11.98 1 48.4% [20]
Auditions 6 16 May 11.09 1 41.0% [21]
Auditions 7 23 May 12.62 2 51.1% [22]
Semi-final 1 24 May 12.93 1 49.2% [23]
Semi-final 2 25 May 14.66 3 51.6% [24]
Semi-final 3 26 May 13.56 5 49.9% [25]
Semi-final 4 28 May 13.11 6 51.2% [26]
Semi-final 5 29 May 13.84 4 57.3% [27]
Live final 30 May 16.36 2 71% [28]
Live final results 18.29 1 67.6% [28]

Criticism & incidents

Fabia Cerra audition

On 11 April 2009, the programme was given notice that an investigation by Ofcom for the involvement of burlesque dancer Fabia Cerra would take place in regards to complaints made by viewers. The primary concern in the complaint was in the nature of her audition - which primarily involved her stripping down to a basque and nipple tassels - and thus its suitability for a family audience. Although the investigation would cross-check the content's broadcast with broadcasting codes on the protection of children from unsuitable content, ITV argued in their defence that the production staff had done its utmost to edit the footage to censor most of her audition, in some cases using reaction shots from the judges and audience.[29]

Susan Boyle's well-being

Although the care and well-being of participants in the live rounds is a priority concern for production staff, the involvement of Susan Boyle required greater attention. Both prior to and after her appearance in the live final, the presence of stories surrounding her from the media had a negative impact on her health,[30] and required her to spend time in The Priory psychiatric clinic in London to recover. Producers were faced with the task of dealing with media intrusion into her private life, after already having to deny some of the claims published in the stories and the amount of attention she was receiving from amongst her fans and the public over her care.[31][32] The decision to involve the Press Complaints Commission, led to calls with press editors to adhere firmly to the code of press conduct in regards to its rules on privacy - this included not allowing unauthorised photography to take place and respecting Boyle's entitlement to privacy.[33][34]

References
  1. Moore, Matthew (14 January 2009). "Kelly Brook named Britain's Got Talent judge". The Daily Telegraph. UK. Retrieved 14 January 2009.
  2. "TV – News – Brook confirmed for 'Britain's Got Talent'". Digital Spy. 13 January 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  3. "Kelly Brook Axed From Britain's Got Talent". Daily Mirror. 20 January 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
  4. "TV – News – Brook axed from 'Britain's Got Talent'". Digital Spy. 20 January 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  5. Leigh Holmwood (14 April 2009). "Britain's got talent hits high note,'". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  6. "10 Years of BGT: Top Ten memorable moments". www.itv.com. 16 March 2019.
  7. "Talent show singer is online hit, BBC". BBC News. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  8. Sadie Gray Last updated 7 January 2012 1:16 pm (29 March 2010). "Singing Talent of Susan Boyle Stuns Simon Cowell, Times of London". The Times. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  9. "An unlikely star brings smiles to views, NBC Nightly News". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 7 December 2003. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  10. "Le Monde – Susan Boyle, chanteuse en herbe et vedette sur le Web". Le Monde (in French). Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  11. "L'Express – Susan Boyle, la révélation de "Britain's got talent"". L'Express (in French). Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  12. "Le Figaro – La gloire surprise de Susan Boyle". Le Figaro (in French). Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  13. "Britain's Got Talent – your 40 semi-finalists revealed | STV Entertainment". Entertainment.stv.tv. 23 May 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  14. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 June 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. "Weekly Top 30 Programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  16. "TV – News – Huge audiences for 'Talent', 'Who'". Digital Spy. 12 April 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  17. "TV – News – 'Talent' climbs to 11.9 million". Digital Spy. 20 April 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  18. "'Talent' appeals to 12.2 million". Digital Spy. 27 April 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  19. "Latest 'Talent' pulls in 10.5 million". Digital Spy. 5 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  20. "'Got Talent' back up to 11.1 million". Digital Spy. 11 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  21. "7.8 million tune in for Eurovision". Digital Spy. 18 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  22. "'Talent', 'Primeval' help ITV1 win Saturday". Digital Spy. 26 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  23. Susan Boyle shows 13.6m she's Got Talent Archived 1 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  24. "Latest 'Talent' peaks with 15.4 million". Digital Spy. 26 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  25. "12.8 million tune in for third 'Talent' semi". Digital Spy. 27 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
  26. "TV – News – 'Talent' boosts ITV News to 6.1m". Digital Spy. 29 May 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  27. "TV – News – Friday 'Talent' pulls in 13.1 million". Digital Spy. 1 June 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  28. "TV – News – 'Talent' final peaks with 19.2 million". Digital Spy. 31 May 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  29. "Britain's Got Talent burlesque stripper prompts dozens of complaints to Ofcom". The Guardian. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  30. "Boyle favourite for Talent finale". BBC News. 30 May 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  31. "Talent star Boyle taken to clinic". BBC News. 1 June 2009.
  32. Jamieson, Alastair (3 June 2009). "Susan Boyle could be in Priory clinic for weeks, says doctor". The Daily Telegraph. UK. Retrieved 24 May 2009.
  33. Brook, Stephen (3 June 2009). "Susan Boyle: press warned to back off Britain's Got Talent star". The Guardian. London.
  34. Editors Code of Practice

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