WE’RE buzzing!
Judge DAVID WALLIAMS is back and has his finger on the buzzer, ready for a dynamite new series of Britain’s Got Talent
‘We get amazing characters on this show – you couldn’t write it better’
DAVID WALLIAMS
NEW ENTERTAINMENT Britain’s Got Talent
Saturday, ITV HD, 8pm THE STAGE IS SET, those loud, red buzzers are ready, and there are some nervous hopefuls in the wings waiting to perform… Yes, it’s time for the return of Britain’s Got Talent.
Once again, judges Simon
Cowell, Amanda Holden, David Walliams and Alesha Dixon have been travelling the UK hoping to uncover the best singers, dance troupes, talented pets, deathdefying daredevils – and everything in between – for the 12th series.
As the first crop of pre-recorded auditions air on ITV on Saturday, we caught up with Walliams to hear more about the latest series…
DO YOU STILL ENJOY BEING A JUDGE ON BGT? It’s a pleasure to be part of a show that’s such a juggernaut of a success. Sometimes the popularity of shows wanes, but BGT seems to go on and on. As a judge you’ve got the best seat in the house and all these people are entertaining you. And when it’s great, it’s magical.
WHAT’S THE DYNAMIC BEEN LIKE BETWEEN THE JUDGES THIS YEAR? Filming long days with four egos, you can get on each other’s nerves – but it’s been very harmonious this year. Sometimes Simon accuses me of ‘stealing his lines’. I’m the kind of person who, if you tell me not to do something, I’ll just do it even more.
CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR NATIONAL TELEVISION AWARDS WIN. HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU REMINDED SIMON THAT YOU’RE ‘BRITAIN’S NO.1 JUDGE’? A few times and he doesn’t enjoy it because he’s competitive. At the auditions, he’s been telling the audience that there’s going to be a recount. So he doesn’t like it, especially as judging is what he does – he doesn’t do anything else. WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR GOLDEN BUZZER ACT? Well, I can tell you that Simon was quite frustrated because he wanted to press the Golden Buzzer for the same act. I don’t want to give much away but it’s a guy who’s written a very funny song. At the auditions, we never know what’s coming up, so you just have to decide whether to hit the Golden Buzzer in that moment.
HAVE THERE BEEN ANY ACTS THAT HAVE COME ON AND YOU’VE THOUGHT: ‘OH NO, NOT ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE’? We’ve had a few magicians in the semi-finals in recent years. My heart slightly sinks when they say they’re doing magic and pull out a deck of cards, especially if it’s the third or fourth time that day you’ve been asked to shuffle a deck of cards.
WE KNOW SIMON LOVES THE MORE DANGEROUS ACTS. HAVE YOU HAD MANY THIS YEAR? We’ve had some escapologists and also a man who put dynamite in his mouth. Every time there’s a dangerous act, Simon asks them: ‘Can you involve David?’ He likes the idea of me being in mortal danger and perhaps dying on TV. He thinks it might be his gift to the world that he’s killed me off!
FINALLY, WHAT DO YOU THINK Britain’s Got Talent SAYS ABOUT BRITAIN? It says that there’s lots of eccentrics in the country and I think there’s something wonderful about celebrating eccentricity. I remember when I first met
Simon, he said: ‘Our show is the real-life version of your show,
Little Britain’. And he’s right. We get such amazing characters on this show – you couldn’t write it better.