Britain's Got Talent (series 7)

The seventh series of Britain's Got Talent, a British talent competition series, began broadcasting in the UK during 2013, from 13 April to 8 June on ITV; 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] though no guest judge was brought in due to 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 for this series.

Britain's Got Talent
Series 7
Hosted byAnthony McPartlin (ITV)
Declan Donnelly (ITV)
Stephen Mulhern (ITV2)
JudgesSimon Cowell
Amanda Holden
Alesha Dixon
David Walliams
WinnerAttraction
Runner-upsJack Carroll
Richard & Adam
Release
Original networkITV
ITV2 (BGMT)
Original release13 April (2013-04-13) –
8 June 2013 (2013-06-08)
Series chronology

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 opera duo Richard & Adam placing 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, in order to avoid clashing with Stephen Mulhern's schedule 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 proceeded 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 |   Third place |   Finalist
  Semi-finalist | Judges' Wildcard Finalist
Participant Age(s) 1 Genre Act Semi-final Result
Aaron Crow 44 Danger Danger Act 1 Eliminated
AJ & Chloe 17, 18 Dance Latin Dance Duo 4 Eliminated
Alex Keirl 20 Singing Singer 4 Eliminated
Alice Fredenham 28 Singing Singer 2 Eliminated
Aliki 29 Singing Singer 5 Eliminated
Arisxandra Libantino 11 Singing Singer 1 Finalist
Asanda 11 Singing Singer 4 Finalist
Attraction 19–40 Dance Shadow Theatre Group 5 Winner
Band of Voices 27–47 Singing Vocal Harmony Group 1 Eliminated
Bosom Buddies 29, 48 Singing / Variety Operatic Drag Duo 1 Eliminated
CEO Dancers 22–24 Dance Dance Trio 5 Eliminated
Chasing the Dream 19-50 Singing Musical Theatre Group 4 Eliminated
Club Town Freaks 25–38 Singing Vocal Harmony Group 4 Eliminated
Francine Lewis 37 Comedy Impressionist 4 Finalist
Freelusion 25–39 Dance Interactive 3D Dance Group 3 Eliminated
Gabz 14 Singing Singer & Pianist 2 Finalist
Gospel Singers Incognito 17–43 Music Gospel Choir 5 Eliminated
J Unity 19 Singing Singing Duet 1 Eliminated
Jack and Cormac 13, 14 Singing Singing Duet 2 Eliminated
Jack Carroll 14 Comedy Comedian 2 Runner-up
James More 24 Magic Magician 4 Eliminated
Jordan O'Keefe 18 Singing Singer & Guitarist 5 Finalist
Joseph Hall 36 Dance Dancer 3 Eliminated
Luminites 18–21 Singing Singing Group 3 Finalist
Maarty Broekman 23 Singing / Music Keytar Player 5 Eliminated
Martin & Marielle 32, 36 Acrobatics / Dance Gymnastic Dance Duo 2 Eliminated
Martin Healey 57 Dance Dancer 1 Eliminated
MC Boy 22 Singing Rapper 3 Eliminated
MckNasty 27 Music Drummer & DJ 2 Eliminated
MD Dancers 14–22 Dance Dance Troupe 2 Eliminated
Meat Diva 31, 27 Singing Cabaret Duet 2 Eliminated
Modupé Obasola 19 Singing Singer 2 Eliminated
Philip Green 21 Comedy Impressionist 1 Eliminated
Poppin' Ron 21 Dance Breakdancer 4 Eliminated
Pre Skool 5–8 Dance Dance Troupe 3 Finalist
Richard & Adam 19, 22 Singing Opera Duo 1 Third place
Robbie Kennedy 22 Singing Singer & Guitarist 3 Eliminated
Rob's Duelling Pianos 2 55 Music Pianist 5 Eliminated
Rosie O'Sullivan 19 Singing Singer 3 Eliminated
Shockarellas 12–17 Dance Dance Group 4 Eliminated
Steve Hewlett 37 Comedy Ventriloquist 5 Finalist
Stevie Pink 45 Magic Illusionist 3 Eliminated
The Glambassadors 21–36 Dance Dance Troupe 5 Eliminated
Thomas Bounce 16 Variety Juggler 3 Eliminated
Youth Creation 7–14 Dance Dance Troupe 1 Eliminated
  • ^1 Ages denoted for a participant(s), pertain to their final performance for this series.
  • ^2 Rob's Duelling Pianos became a solo act, after a member of the act left before the semi-final.

Semi-finals summary
Buzzed out | Judges' vote |   Won the public vote
  Won the judges' vote |   Lost the judges' vote |   Eliminated

Semi-final 1 (27 May)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Ellie Goulding[8]

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [9]
Cowell Holden Dixon Walliams
Martin Healey 1 9th - Eliminated
Band of Voices 2 6th - Eliminated
Youth Creation 3 3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
J-Unity 4 7th - Eliminated
Bosom Buddies 5 8th - Eliminated
Philip Green 6 5th - Eliminated
Arisxandra Libantino 7 2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Aaron Crow 8 4th - Eliminated
Richard & Adam 9 1st (Won Public vote)

Semi-final 2 (28 May)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Jennifer Lopez[10]

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [9]
Cowell Holden Dixon Walliams
Martin & Marielle 1 8th - Eliminated
MckNasty 2 5th - Eliminated
Jack and Cormac 3 3rd (Lost Judges' vote)
Modupé 4 9th - Eliminated
Meat Diva 5 7th - Eliminated
MD 6 6th - Eliminated
Alice Fredenham 7 4th - Eliminated
Jack Carroll 8 1st (Won Public vote)
Gabz 9 2nd (Won Judges' vote)

Semi-final 3 (30 May)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Demi Lovato[11]

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [9]
Cowell Holden Dixon Walliams
Freelusion 1 7th - Eliminated
Robbie Kennedy 2 5th - Eliminated
Stevie Pink 3 8th - Eliminated
Pre Skool 4 2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Thomas Bounce 5 9th - Eliminated
Rosie O'Sullivan 6 4th - Eliminated
Joseph Hall 7 3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
MC Boy 8 6th - Eliminated
Luminites 9 1st (Won Public vote)

Semi-final 4 (31 May)

Guest Performer, Results Show: Olly Murs[12]

Semi-Finalist Order Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [9]
Cowell Holden Dixon Walliams
Club Town Freaks 1 9th - Eliminated
Alex Keirl 2 3rd (Lost Judges' vote)
Shockarellas 3 6th - Eliminated
Poppin' Ron 4 8th - Eliminated
James More 5 4th - Eliminated
Chasing the Dream 6 7th - Eliminated
Francine Lewis 7 1st (Won Public vote)
Asanda 8 2nd (Won Judges' vote)
AJ & Chloe 9 5th - Eliminated

Semi-final 5 (1 June)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Ashleigh and Pudsey[13]

Artist Order Buzzes and Judges' Vote Result [9]
Cowell Holden Dixon Walliams
CEO Dancers 1 7th - Eliminated
Aliki 2 4th - Eliminated
The Glambassadors 3 8th - Eliminated
Steve Hewlett 3 4 3rd (Judges' vote tied - Lost on Public vote)
Rob's Duelling Pianos 5 9th - Eliminated
Maarty Broekman 6 6th - Eliminated
Gospel Singers Incognito 7 5th - Eliminated
Jordan O'Keefe 8 2nd (Judges' vote tied - Won on Public vote)
Attraction 9 1st (Won Public vote)
  • ^3 Steve Hewlett was later sent through to the final as the judges wildcard.

Final (8 June)

Guest Performers, Results Show: Psy,[14] and Taylor Swift & Ed Sheeran[15]

  Winner |   Runner-up |   3rd place
Finalist Order Finished [9]
Pre Skool 1 9th
Asanda 2 11th
Gabz 3 7th
Steve Hewlett 4 4th
Jordan O'Keefe 5 6th
Arisxandra 6 8th
Francine Lewis 7 10th
Richard & Adam 8 3rd
Jack Carroll 9 2nd
Luminites 10 5th
Attraction 11 1st

Ratings
Main article: List of Britain's Got Talent episodes
Episode Date Total ITV viewers (millions) [16] Weekly rank [16] Share (%)
Auditions 1 13 April12.13136.9 [17]
Auditions 2 20 April11.86143.9 [18]
Auditions 3 27 April11.08143.9 [19]
Auditions 4 4 May11.59145.0 [20]
Auditions 5 11 May12.36145.2 [21]
Auditions 6 18 May10.88138.1 [22]
Auditions 7 26 May9.74338.0 [23]
Semi-final 1 27 May11.48141.5 [24]
Semi-final 1 results 9.271031.4 [24]
Semi-final 2 28 May10.20636.5 [25]
Semi-final 2 results 8.391428.5[25]
Semi-final 3 30 May9.76837.5 [26]
Semi-final 3 results 8.511332.3 [26]
Semi-final 4 31 May9.98737.5 [27]
Semi-final 4 results 8.711232.7 [27]
Semi-final 5 1 June9.74941.9 [28]
Semi-final 5 results 9.041132.8 [28]
Live final 8 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 by production staff, 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 protestor, 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 her failure to secure a place during the 2012 contest, when she auditioned with her classical band.[36]

References
  1. Fletcher, Alex (13 December 2012). "'Britain's Got Talent' 2013 judge audition dates revealed". Digital Spy.
  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.
  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. "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. "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. 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. Eames, Tom (29 May 2013). "'The Apprentice' loses 900,000 viewers on Tuesday". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK.
  26. Eames, Tom (31 May 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' third semi-final attracts 8.5m on ITV". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK.
  27. Hilton, Beth (1 June 2013). "'Britain's Got Talent' latest semi-final scores 8m on ITV". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK.
  28. 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. 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. 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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