Mrluvaluva
14-04-2010, 12:00 AM
Britain’s Got Talent judge Amanda Holden has revealed there will be less dancers and singers and far more variety on this series of the show.
Speaking to ITV, Amanda also said that this series has ’stacks more talent’ than the previous series, with good impressionists and comedians. Read on for the full interview.
How are you feeling about the standard of talent for this year?
We have impressionists, a regurgitator, comedians, ventriloquists and loads more fun acts. Lots more variety and less dancers and singers which is what we need after the wealth of talent in that area last year.
We’re now in the fourth year, do you still enjoy doing the show?
I can’t believe four years have gone by. It’s incredible. I still absolutely love working on this show and treat it like I am on my sofa at home watching. I like to forget we are on the telly and I always try to react exactly from the heart and say just what I’m thinking so it stays fresh and genuine. For as long as this ride lasts I’m on it!
What have been your highlights so far on the auditions?
Highlights are a brilliant impressionist. And a fab gymnastic routine that I thought I would fall asleep watching but it turned out to be utterly amazing. I hope it comes across as brilliantly on the TV screen as when we saw it live. There is also a father and son act that all of us found very moving and the best dog act we have ever seen!
What has been the worst audition you’ve seen during auditions?
We’ve had many a dance troup this year that can’t dance, and don’t get me started on the animals! We have high hopes for the animal when they come out on stage – be it pig, horse, dog, goat and then they don’t perform – saying that we have had some amazing animal acts this year. We also still get comedians that think it’s funny to do a Frank Spencer impression – half the audience don’t know who Frank Spencer is as they’re teenagers!!
Last year’s show had fantastic talent and great TV moments with the likes of Diversity, Stavros Flatley and Susan Boyle – are you worried the show can’t top that this year?
Last year’s show was so special because of the phenomenon that was Susan Boyle. We have stacks more talent! Britain never lets us down! It’s just different this year, lots more variety and it’s very funny – variety is great for the show. I love it and can’t wait for it to return to our TV screens so everyone can see.
Did you miss Simon when he was ill during auditions and what did you think of Louis Walsh as his stand in?
We did miss Simon but got away with murder during his absence! It felt more relaxed and we felt more generous so put through a lot of weird stuff he would have just poo pooed!
Louis was fantastic! He found it all very amusing but did have his music head on as he kept saying ‘you just won’t sell records’ when he was judging jugglers.
Do you worry about finding the right winner each year for The Royal Variety Performance?
I don’t worry, but I take finding a suitable person for the Royals very seriously. One day I would like to have a Damehood and I don’t want anything to get in the way! Dame Amanda Holden has a nice ring to it. What we do worry about is being able to top the previous year as the winner is always so strong.
Have Simon and Piers been behaving themselves this year on the panel?
Piers and Simon never behave. They still have their spats and waste time arguing about stuff that’s not to do with the show – their cars or ratings or success in America! I’m there to rein them in! Simon has also had the giggles a lot this year. He hasn’t been able to control himself at all! It’s been hilarious but slightly embarrassing as I have run out of excuses for him! I have to say he’s having a sneezing fit or is overcome with emotion!
Do you still feel you bring a softness to the panel, or have you toughened up over the years?
I still think I bring a softness. Not through being an easy touch but by being the only performer on the panel so I have empathy for the auditionees! I understand mistakes can be made through nerves and that it doesn’t always mean someone has no talent if they drop their balls, forget their song momentarily or fall over during a dance routine. I won’t tolerate people who come on stage and milk a story for sympathy. You can tell the genuine people. That is how I have changed over the last 4 years.
What kind of act would you like to see win this year?
I would love a good variety act to win. I know who we have in the semis and there are some great contenders! They are from old school stock but have been modernised for today audiences! We still have strong singers and dancers but it would make a great change for something different to win.
How has the 4th judge been this year during auditions?
The 4th judge has been lethal again this year! They just go for it and won’t tolerate any rubbish! Sometimes we fall out badly because they don’t agree with our decisions! A few times we have actually let them change our mind which was unheard of last year. But this show more than any other talent show really listens to its public! They are hard to ignore.
Are you proud of the 3 BGT winners we’ve had so far?
I am very proud of the winners so far. They are still people you can name and who are working!
A lot of talent show winners are forgettable and you forget them in a matter of months but ours are all out there doing great stuff! A lot of non winners have also had their lives changed forever too. We looked this year for Royal Variety contenders but also had to bare in mind the fact the world will be watching!
Do Magicians still make your heart sink when they walk out on stage?
My heart does still sink with magicians because they still don’t think outside the box! We did have a couple of potentials but in the grand scheme of things they didn’t really match up to the level of talent we put through I would absolutely love to be proved wrong! I don’t want to get too bitchy about them because I don’t want to put people off auditioning!
Source (http://talent.********.co.uk/2010/judges/5852-more-variety-and-less-dancers-and-singers-reveals-amanda-holden.html)
Speaking to ITV, Amanda also said that this series has ’stacks more talent’ than the previous series, with good impressionists and comedians. Read on for the full interview.
How are you feeling about the standard of talent for this year?
We have impressionists, a regurgitator, comedians, ventriloquists and loads more fun acts. Lots more variety and less dancers and singers which is what we need after the wealth of talent in that area last year.
We’re now in the fourth year, do you still enjoy doing the show?
I can’t believe four years have gone by. It’s incredible. I still absolutely love working on this show and treat it like I am on my sofa at home watching. I like to forget we are on the telly and I always try to react exactly from the heart and say just what I’m thinking so it stays fresh and genuine. For as long as this ride lasts I’m on it!
What have been your highlights so far on the auditions?
Highlights are a brilliant impressionist. And a fab gymnastic routine that I thought I would fall asleep watching but it turned out to be utterly amazing. I hope it comes across as brilliantly on the TV screen as when we saw it live. There is also a father and son act that all of us found very moving and the best dog act we have ever seen!
What has been the worst audition you’ve seen during auditions?
We’ve had many a dance troup this year that can’t dance, and don’t get me started on the animals! We have high hopes for the animal when they come out on stage – be it pig, horse, dog, goat and then they don’t perform – saying that we have had some amazing animal acts this year. We also still get comedians that think it’s funny to do a Frank Spencer impression – half the audience don’t know who Frank Spencer is as they’re teenagers!!
Last year’s show had fantastic talent and great TV moments with the likes of Diversity, Stavros Flatley and Susan Boyle – are you worried the show can’t top that this year?
Last year’s show was so special because of the phenomenon that was Susan Boyle. We have stacks more talent! Britain never lets us down! It’s just different this year, lots more variety and it’s very funny – variety is great for the show. I love it and can’t wait for it to return to our TV screens so everyone can see.
Did you miss Simon when he was ill during auditions and what did you think of Louis Walsh as his stand in?
We did miss Simon but got away with murder during his absence! It felt more relaxed and we felt more generous so put through a lot of weird stuff he would have just poo pooed!
Louis was fantastic! He found it all very amusing but did have his music head on as he kept saying ‘you just won’t sell records’ when he was judging jugglers.
Do you worry about finding the right winner each year for The Royal Variety Performance?
I don’t worry, but I take finding a suitable person for the Royals very seriously. One day I would like to have a Damehood and I don’t want anything to get in the way! Dame Amanda Holden has a nice ring to it. What we do worry about is being able to top the previous year as the winner is always so strong.
Have Simon and Piers been behaving themselves this year on the panel?
Piers and Simon never behave. They still have their spats and waste time arguing about stuff that’s not to do with the show – their cars or ratings or success in America! I’m there to rein them in! Simon has also had the giggles a lot this year. He hasn’t been able to control himself at all! It’s been hilarious but slightly embarrassing as I have run out of excuses for him! I have to say he’s having a sneezing fit or is overcome with emotion!
Do you still feel you bring a softness to the panel, or have you toughened up over the years?
I still think I bring a softness. Not through being an easy touch but by being the only performer on the panel so I have empathy for the auditionees! I understand mistakes can be made through nerves and that it doesn’t always mean someone has no talent if they drop their balls, forget their song momentarily or fall over during a dance routine. I won’t tolerate people who come on stage and milk a story for sympathy. You can tell the genuine people. That is how I have changed over the last 4 years.
What kind of act would you like to see win this year?
I would love a good variety act to win. I know who we have in the semis and there are some great contenders! They are from old school stock but have been modernised for today audiences! We still have strong singers and dancers but it would make a great change for something different to win.
How has the 4th judge been this year during auditions?
The 4th judge has been lethal again this year! They just go for it and won’t tolerate any rubbish! Sometimes we fall out badly because they don’t agree with our decisions! A few times we have actually let them change our mind which was unheard of last year. But this show more than any other talent show really listens to its public! They are hard to ignore.
Are you proud of the 3 BGT winners we’ve had so far?
I am very proud of the winners so far. They are still people you can name and who are working!
A lot of talent show winners are forgettable and you forget them in a matter of months but ours are all out there doing great stuff! A lot of non winners have also had their lives changed forever too. We looked this year for Royal Variety contenders but also had to bare in mind the fact the world will be watching!
Do Magicians still make your heart sink when they walk out on stage?
My heart does still sink with magicians because they still don’t think outside the box! We did have a couple of potentials but in the grand scheme of things they didn’t really match up to the level of talent we put through I would absolutely love to be proved wrong! I don’t want to get too bitchy about them because I don’t want to put people off auditioning!
Source (http://talent.********.co.uk/2010/judges/5852-more-variety-and-less-dancers-and-singers-reveals-amanda-holden.html)