Gruffydd: I’ll never feel like that again
BRITAIN’S Got Talent’s golden boy has told how his proud nan broke down in tears when she saw him performing on the show for the first time.
Gruffydd Wyn Roberts, 22, from Amlwch in Anglesey, won Amanda Holden’s golden buzzer following his sensational audition on ITV on Saturday.
As a result, the rugby player will go straight through to the live semi-finals, which are expected to be shown in the next few weeks.
After missing the chance to see her grandson’s audition live in Blackpool before Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams, Gruff’s nan Alwena saw it for the first time on Saturday evening.
The classical singer, who lives with his nan, said she was “crying her eyes out” as she watched at their local pub in Amlwch with family and friends.
Speaking from Pontio in Bangor, where he works as a theatre assistant, he said: “Although my nan wasn’t there on the day, I called her straight away once the audition was over.
“She was fast asleep but I had to wake her up and tell her the news. She was over the moon and she still is.
“And she was crying her eyes out, bless her, on Saturday night when she watched it. She’s such a big support.”
Despite producers not airing Gruff’s January audition until Saturday, he was the first act to win the coveted golden buzzer on the very first day of auditions.
After unexpectedly pressing the buzzer on day one, Amanda ran on stage to give her golden act a hug, telling him that he’d made his nan proud.
“When she hit that buzzer and the golden confetti came down from the air, you can’t describe the feeling,” said Gruff.
“It was just incredible. I’ll never feel like that again I don’t think.
“I still can’t believe really.”
Revealing how difficult it was to keep the news to himself, he added: “It’s been a long five months trying to keep it quiet.
“I was allowed to tell friends and family, but I think they’re the ones who found it more difficult keeping it secret than I did because they were all so excited about it.
“I had to get myself ready for the semifinal, so I had other things to concentrate on, but my friends and family were so excited to tell everyone.”
The budding star, whose audition has been viewed more than three million times on YouTube, wowed the judges with a sensational rendition of Nessun Dorma by Puccini.
But his audition had been halted by Simon Cowell just seconds in, with the judge calling him “cold and mechanical”.
Gruff, who doesn’t think the move was staged, said: “What Simon said upset me a little bit, but afterwards I was so happy how it turned out.
“I think I’ve prepared myself well enough not to be stopped again, but if it happens, it happens and there’s nothing I can do about it really.
“I thought it was all over when he stopped me, but I was lucky enough to get that second chance.
“I just had to take it all in and give it everything. I had to grab the bull by the horns and get through it.
“Seeing the reaction from my friends and brother was definitely something that got me through it.
“I definitely feel prepared for the semifinals though. I’ve been rehearsing religiously.”
Revealing he “wouldn’t do anything differently” if he was to relive the moment, he added: “I went with my gut feeling.
“I thought Un Giorno Per Noi was a good song. It was different and something nobody had really heard on the show before. it’s happened
“I only had Nessun Dorma as a backup really, just in case, but I don’t think I’d have done it differently if I was to do it again.”
Although he says he has a few tricks up his sleeve for the semi-finals, Gruff said his biggest competition is Ronan Busfield – another operatic singer who has been compared to Paul Potts.
“All the golden buzzers this year are singers, but Ronan Busfield does a similar sort of thing to me, so I’ll need to watch out for him,” he said.
“I think there’s a lot of tough competition this year. The standard is really high.
“Alesha has called it the battle of the singers this year, so I think it’s going to be quite a challenge, but game on.”
Asked whether he thinks he could go on to win the show, he said: “Who knows? The reaction I’ve had from the public so far has been incredible and they’re all rooting for me, so who knows?
“I’m just taking it step by step at the moment and hopefully I’ll get through the semi-finals. We’ll see what happens after then.”
Traditionally, the winner of the show gets to perform in front of the Royal Family at the Royal Variety Performance, as well as being awarded a cash prize of £250,000.
Although Simon Cowell and his team are yet to confirm if this year will follow suit, Gruff said he’s already “thought a lot” about what he would do with the money if he went on to win.
“I’d probably have a night out with the lads to celebrate,” he laughed.
“And I’d use it to help develop myself as an artist. I think it would set me up for what I love doing, which is singing.
“My long-term dream is to be a classical singer, selling out theatres, touring and selling albums.”