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Tag: Britain’s Got Talent

All the latest breaking news on Britain’s Got Talent. Browse THEGAYUK’s complete collection of news, articles and commentary on Britain’s Got Talent.

  • A Look At The Man Who Made David Walliams Go Gay

    David Walliams attracted a fair bit of criticism over the weekend for showing attraction to an act on BGT.

    ©THAMES/SYCO TV

    Actor, comedian, author and BGT judge David Walliams attracted a bit of criticism over the weekend after he was seen to be acting gay for laughs – although on further inspection, perhaps he was right to get excited.

    ©THAMES/SYCO TV ©THAMES/SYCO TV ©THAMES/SYCO TV

    Comments appeared on Twitter after David became excited when contestant Charlie Placais walked on to the BGT stage with his highly chiseled torso on show – and displayed incredible strength and poise during his acrobatics. As Charlie exited the stage David left his seat and ran after him to hug him.

    David Walliams told the Radio Times in an interview that he hated it when people “confessed” or “revealed” their sexuality.

    He suggesting that someone’s ‘heart and soul’ is more important than their sex.

    ©THAMES/SYCO TV

    Judging by these pictures we can see why.

  • David Walliams Blasted For “Gay” Act On Britain’s Got Talent

    David Walliams Blasted For “Gay” Act On Britain’s Got Talent

    David Walliams has been blasted on social media for acting “gay” whilst judging on Britain’s Got Talent.

    © Fremantle Media.All images are Copyright of Fremantle Media

    UPDATED: 23/05/16 8:32

    The Britain’s Got Talent judge, David Walliams has been criticised for ‘pretending to be gay’.

    Fans of the show took to social media to question David’s sexuality and many suggesting that David’s behaviour was offensive and insulting, when using overtly camp gestures or using homosexual innuendos for laughs.

    The comedian, who was married to Lara Stone for five years often uses attraction to men to get laughs from live audiences, but has hinted that the gender of a potential partner isn’t so important, suggesting that someone’s ‘heart and soul’ is more important than their sex.

     

    ©THAMES/SYCO TV

    Comments appeared on Twitter after David became excited when contestant act Charlie Placais exposed his chest on stage. David ran after him as he attempted to leave the stage – and hugged his naked torso.

     

    ALSO READ: Harry Styles says that the perfect partner doesn’t have to be female

     

     

     

     

     


    David Walliams, whose marriage to Lara Stone ended last year hinted that he could potentially fall for either a man or a woman and has suggested that “things can change for people over the years,” during an interview with the Radio Times.

    He explained that love is about falling in love with someone’s ‘soul, heart and brain’, rather than by their gender.

  • Britain’s Got Talent’s Young Dancer Speaks Of “Gay” Bullying

    Britain’s Got Talent’s Young Dancer Speaks Of “Gay” Bullying

    Britain’s Got Talent judges emotionally break down after Jack Higgins admits to being bullied and being called gay after his heartbreaking performance.

    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.
    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.

    Young dancer Jack Higgins, 14,  won the hearts of the nation during last night’s episode of Britain’s Got Talent after he admitted that he had been bullied at school and has been called gay because of his ballet talent.

    It was during his interview after his performance that Jack broke down with tears in his eyes to explain the torment he had received from bullies at school. He told the judges that he had even been called gay because of his dance abilities.

    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.
    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.

     

    Judges David Walliams, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden were visibly emotional after Jack’s performance and after he revealed that he had been bullied.

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    David Walliam called the dance a “real Billy Elliot moment”,

    He continued,

    “It was so moving. The passion and commitment… it was really powerful.”

    But it was Simon Cowell who managed to put the bullies in their place saying,

    “You know the one thing bullies don’t like?

    “They don’t like it when you do well. I can see how hard you’ve worked and I congratulate you.”

    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.
    CREDIT: © ITV and Fremantle Media.

     

    The teen danced a self choreographed performance to A Great Big World’s  Say Something which left many audience members in tears and resulted in a standing ovation for the teen.

    The 14-year-old dancer looked visibly moved by the audience’s and judge’s reaction.

    Jack had the last laugh those as all four judges gave him a resounding four yeses, which means that Jack is now through to the next round.

     

  • Ex Policeman Wows Simon Cowell With Beyonce Drag Act

    Aaron Carty a 29-year-old ex-policeman from London went full-on Sasha fierce in the last episode of Britain’s Got Talent.

    Aaron wowed the judges with his drag dance act to a medley of Beyoncé hits.

    https://vimeo.com/127143487

     

    Even Alesha got up and had a wiggle.

  • COMMENT: Why The World Needs David Walliams

    Last Wednesday it was announced in the media that David Walliams and Lara Stone are divorcing.

    As David has always been a very private man this should have been, enough information to satisfy anyone not in their immediate circle. But surprisingly, the next day there was an avalanche of headlines and frontages that seemed almost from a different era. The blame was put squarely on David’s beloved camp persona and his love for playing female characters.

    The writing seemed offensively homophobic and more about the change of hurting David than an article informing the public on why the couple are divorcing.

    (The claim that Lara did not know about David’s image before they were married seems quite far-fetched, as she spoke about watching his work following their courtship in interviews soon after they begun dating.)

    On Twitter and message boards two certain groups of people seemed very concerned with David’s sexuality and his dresses, as if the two are always mutually inclusive.

    Isn’t it sad that in 2015 a camp man with a love for dressing up still seems so threatening to the media and certain parts of the population?

    The idea of a man being at ease with his feminine side and appreciating same sex beauty still seems like one of the biggest taboos in the world (one man even wrote to the Daily Telegraph to say people like him should be castrated. And no, he was not part of ISIS.)

    David has always fought against these taboos, from his earliest interviews on he has spread the message that being locked in a box of forced masculinity is boring and worse, limiting. It is also damaging to some-one’s personality, always having to think about whether doing something is or isn’t “gay” or “feminine”. People raised to be aware of such things are often the ones that end up attacking others who are more “open minded” and free spirited.

    In a time where people who are transgender, gay, flamboyant or in any other way different from the “norm” are facing fresh oppression around the world (homophobia is rising in the UK), people like David are needed to spread a counter message.

    David is working hard at doing this and is succeeding.

    His book The Boy in the Dress, which he admitted was semi autobiographical, is selling in countries where being gay, trans or different is illegal, changing young peoples outlook, showing that being different is actually being normal.

    In the UK the book has changed young boys considerably and in a good way: helping them understand and accept their more feminine male classmates.

    This World’s Book Day it was clear how much of a difference David is truly making: his timeline was flooded with young boys proudly in dresses, some mothers said they even demanded makeup! These boys were not afraid to do what they wanted, not limited in their choices: they just thought wearing a dress was fun. This book has opened their eyes. So if in future they may see or be the person that preferences the feminine over the masculine, they will see it as normal – having David’s message in their mind.

    But he has done more. The following might sound odd to people, but his flirting with Simon Cowell (and other men,) which has also been judged by the media and parts of the public, is also important to society. When David first appeared on Got Talent having David flirt with Simon on a big pre-watershed family TV show tells the world: “Hey, flirting with someone of the same gender is not weird or scary. It’s just as normal as a male judge flirting with a female judge.” And yes, it has brought difference. Young kids are talking about “loving” how David flirts with Simon, saying they want that kind of relationship too. They are “shipping” them as they would male and female characters. They see it as normal. Also David is not “pretending” to be gay, as some say.

    Over the years he has made it as clear as possible, without actually saying the words, that he has attraction to men and women, and would just at as easily have married a man had he found the right one.

    NOT that it matters, as that is not the message he is trying to spread. He is going beyond this, saying everyone should be able to be who they are: difference is to be celebrated. This has even affected Simon Cowell, who has changed considerably and even allowed David to put him in a dress and last season had David sat on his lap.

    Maybe this is what scares some people so much about David Walliams. They fear he is threatening their masculinity, their sexuality.

    Is his mission to put every man in drag and make up? Is he forcing people into homosexuality?

    Of course he is not, don’t be ridicules. No, he is just trying to change your attitude. It is not just about dresses or sexuality or gender, but difference: “It is alright to be different”. He is trying to spread tolerance.

    Think about it: who wouldn’t want to live in a world where no one is judged for being who they are? This is his message and if the new generation can understand that message, if boys and girls alike can be free in how they want to express themselves, maybe it is time that the adults allowed themselves this freedom again too.

    Many parents, thankfully do understand, as these messages posted to him show:

    Thankfully David still seems to be himself. When asked at his book tour on Thursday ‘if stealing was legal, what would you like to steal?’ David quickly retorted: ‘Simon Cowell’s heart’…

     

    NEVER change!

     

    Opinions expressed in this article may not reflect those of THEGAYUK, it’s management or editorial teams. If you’d like to comment or write a comment, opinion or blog piece, please click here.

  • INTERVIEW | (Wild) Bill McKechnie

    You can be forgiven for not having heard of Bill McKechnie. Affectionately known as Wild Bill, the former Britain’s Got Talent contestant has been working away on new music and supporting LGBT organisations over the past few years. Earlier this year saw the release of Bill’s new track ‘Fluffy Snow’, which he is aiming to get into the charts by Christmas. With all of Bill’s work supporting charities, including a number of LGBT causes, I caught up with him to find out more.

    Bill, lovely to speak to you. You’ve released a Christmas song, called Fluffy Snow, which you’re trying to get into the charts in time for the festive period. It’s an incredibly catchy song. How did the idea for Fluffy Snow come about?
    I was going through the rhythms on my keyboard and came across a Christmas Swing which I loved straight away. So I decided to try my hand at a Christmas composition. It took me just over thirty minutes to come up with the tune and as daft as it may sound the words were already there in my head. They were a little bit muddled up to start with but they soon began to flow naturally.

    You’ve been getting a lot of airplay from radio stations around the country. What’s the reaction to the song been like?
    I have been overwhelmed by the support from people all over the world, especially the support of Santa Claus, who has said it is going to be a hit. I have many friends who constantly share my Fluffy Snow posts on Facebook and Twitter.

    You do a lot for charity and in particular you have been a big supporter of gay pride events in recent years. It’s refreshing to see, as you’re a straight man. What is it about LGBT causes that makes you want to support them?
    Straight??? After two failed marriages I like to keep my options open. From a young age until my 40s I was extremely homophobic. I didn’t think it was right that two men should be together, but with age I started to see things from a different perspective. I have met a lot of gay men and lesbians over the last fifteen years and some have become my friends. It was an honour for me to be part of recent Pride festivals. I guess at the same time it was a release to finally allow myself to be me and stop worrying what other people think. I get a lot of pleasure from raising money for community groups and charities. I was blessed with many talents and I aim to use those gifts to help others less fortunate than myself.

    You’re a former Britain’s Got Talent contestant. What was it like being part of such a huge show?
    Being on Britain’s Got Talent was a truly awesome experience. I applied for the show with one purpose in mind and that was to get on national television to reach out to disabled viewers and show them how they could dance using their hands. Everyone joined in and learnt the hand dance routine to Saturday Night Fever, even Simon Cowell.

    What’s 2015 got in store?
    I have self-published an eBook that is available on Amazon Kindle. It’s called First Aid and Health & Safety in Rhyme. I’m aiming to get it accepted by a publisher as I have had great feedback from health organisations and first aid providers.

    You can find out more about Wild Bill and the work he does to support charities, including LGBT causes, at www.wild-bill.co.uk. You can get your copy of Fluffy Snow on Amazon.

  • INTERVIEW: La Voix

    INTERVIEW: La Voix

    Having been on the scene a number of years now, La Voix won the nation’s hearts on Britain’s Got Talent this year performing with the London Big Band, sadly losing out at the Semi-Finals, but concreting her career as one of the UK’s top drag acts. Of course, there was only one question we could ask first…

    Has the cheque become bigger?

    Of course it has, I’m not gonna lie. I mean, two years ago I was working as a makeup artist and I was doing the odd gig here and there. Now two years later La Voix is full-time. It’s what I do. I’ve got an office space I rent, a PA for bookings and invoices and It’s crazy, It’s like the world of camp gone mad.

    Do you get a lot of gigs with the London Big Band or do you now work alone?

    The immediate after-mass, the band took a break because it was a long rehearsal, you can imagine trying to get twenty-five of us together for rehearsal was hell because they’ve all got jobs. Next year we’ve got lots of exciting bookings together. We’ve got theatre tours all up and down the country, but this year for me has been majority solo.

    Is there any bitching from the other queens on the scene, since your new found fame?

    I get a mixed reaction. I think I’m half loved, half hated. I’m very ambitious and I’m not scared to let people know that. Sometimes people think that It’s a bit of a bitch but I think I’d say I’m a bit of a diva, but not a bitch, I think there’s a difference. I just think It’s about time, if the drag scene is gonna move forward, like it has done in New York with Ru Paul’s Drag Race, we need to step it up. I think it can be a little bit ropey over here. Like I said on Britain’s Got Talent I think you can get a bit of a naff vibe and there’s some great acts out there and some great talent but it just doesn’t get the light of day really.

    Drag had been fading from the public consciousness but seems to have come full circle with popular TV drag shows. Was there a fear in the drag community that the art was dying out?

    I came into the cabaret scene quite late off the back of wining Drag Idol in 2012, so I’ve really only been on the gay scene as an act for two years, which is quite short compared to a lot of the names who have done ‘20-25 years darling’, to quote Danny La Rue. When I joined I didn’t realise there was such a big scene and it opened my eyes. You’d imagine going to Soho and it’d be dripping with drag shows and drag bars but there’s a lot more on the outskirts with your Clapham, your Camden, your Brighton. I thought drag was definitely on its way out but I think its gone a bit more main stream with Ru Paul’s Drag Race, and it’s bound to come over here in some form at some point.

    Well, we know that Ru Paul’s Drag Race is coming to the UK, so what are your thoughts on that?

    Do you know what? I am more than prepared for it. I’ve been preparing for this for more than a year. I’ve taken sewing classes. If that comes about without a doubt I’ll be going hook line and sinker to get on that show. I like a competition.

    Are you any good at sewing?

    No, I am one of those lazy ones that has everything made for me. I literally, no word of a lie, started an evening sewing class. I’ve got a sewing machine and this is literally all in preparation for whet Ru Paul’s Drag Race comes to the UK. I think it’s such a great opportunity to get the drag back out there. I mean, just look at the work those guys get for being on that show, why on earth you’d be a drag queen and not be on it I do not know.

    Do you think that Simon Cowell would make a good drag queen?

    No! He’d be horrendous I mean look at his style as a man. Imagine what he’d be like as a woman. No.

    Taking in his shape and size, is there any advice you’d give him if he was looking for a moment in drag?

    Oh My God. He’d just have to wear a huge cover all and lots of ostrich to try and cover that shape but he should definitely keep his flat top hair style. He could maybe be the first lesbian drag look.

    You came about during Drag Idol in 2012, so were you doing drag at all before then?

    Yeah. I was a resident down at Madame Jo Jo’s on a saturday for seven years, but I don’t think people knew I was down there really because it’s very much a non-gay crowd now, like all stag and hen nights. It was very choreographed and stylised and I was quite snobby about the cabaret scene for a long time. I didn’t want to be part of that ‘singing in a pub’. I came from a theatre background and had my degree and I very much wanted to be a serious actor for a while. The drag thing, it sounds corny, kinda found me. I was working as a make up artist and also a singer and it just happened, I put the two together. I didn’t realise how lucrative it was and how much work you could get otherwise I would have done it years ago. So I’m absolutely loving it.

    So where did the name come from?

    I was really inspired by a retired lip syncer in America who, although I’m a live singer, I was just amazed by his You Tube. He had red hair and a 50s look and I was always very honest that I literally stole that image because it was so iconic and I think gay men are so intrigued by your Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, but there’s not many acts that actually embody that 50s era. With his name being Lip Syncer and what he did was lip syncing, I quite liked the the idea that his name told you what he did and I thought my point of difference was that I sing live, which is not that different in Britain but it certainly is in the States. We were just playing around with the voice, singing and different languages and we just came up with that really.

    Where are you from originally?

    I’m from the North East, Stockton-on-Tees

    And do you ever get to go back?

    Yeah, It’s a very small scene because Newcastle is 45 mins up the road and Leeds is about 45 mins to an hour the other way, so you’re in between two quite prolific cities really that have got quite good scenes. You’ve got the odd one or two bars, the one that’s gay on a Tuesday night, so It’s very small. However, what was wonderful was this year, off the back of telly, I headlined the Middlesborough Community Pride, which is one of the first gay prides they’ve ever done in the North East.

    Did your folks attend?

    Yeah, they walked the gay parade march with me this year and that was lovely. My mum tries my dresses on. The first thing she does when she comes to london, oh let me try this on, let me try this one on.

    So you haven’t just burst from no-where, you’ve almost got one foot in the older more established drag queens camp and also a foot in the new crop of queens that have come about, because of TV, so looking back at the ‘heritage’ queens, the Dave Lynn the Titti La Camp, is there anyone who’s your favourite?

    Well Titti La Camp, who hosted Drag Idol, was a wonderful support for me very early on. I remember having this phone call with her and she went through every single cabaret venue in the uk from the North to the South saying this stage is like this and this town’s not very good, this town’s good, this is the money you need here this is the money you’ll get there, you wont get any higher than that there and she was really, really lovely and supportive and I’ve always had a soft spot for Titti La Camp. I think without him I wouldn’t have won the competition and still been a little bit snobby about it all and not done as much work as I would have. He basically said, take the money, take the booking, say yes to everything, just do it, and it was the best advice he gave me. It exploded me onto the scene.

    From the new batch has anyone caught your eye?

    I like Myra Dubois, he’s very original and quirky. He hosted the Cabaret Awards last year and I was just in tears with laughter as he was just so clever. He can’t sing a note for toffee but his comedy’s great. [Laughs.] To be honest I think we need a new school. We need some fresh blood there.

    Do you think the idea of a drag girl-band works or do you think there’s just too many personalities?

    I think with the age group of some of those acts they’ve got in, what spills across the footlights for me is the politics in the group or the problems with rehearsing. If you were to do a girl group of Dave Lynn, Miss Jason and Titti, straight away what you’d get is triple the energy, you’d get fun and any politics and jokes would be thrown to the audience to laugh at.

    How do you think you’d fair in the executive realness? What kind of look would you pull?

    I’d go for Ann Widdecombe.

    Oh dear, that’s an image. Tell me the very first time La Voix came about, where were you?

    We came up with the name and the look and I decided I wanted to be with a live band, even though now that’s few and far between because of the logistics, but I hired Madame Jo Jo’s myself, and Shadow Lounge, and did a ticketed show with a live band, which was brave as I had no following – which showed in the ticket sales! We literally launched like you would a new product. Looking back it was a little too premature, however it certainly prepared me for a couple of months later when the whole Drag Idol came up.

    Do you have a partner?

    No.

    In La Voix’s life does she have a partner?

    Oh, that’s a very deep question. No, I don’t think she does. She’s been married before. She’s got kids but she lost them somewhere. She put them up for adoption when she got gigs because she didn’t want to lose her record deal for being pregnant.