BY ERIC KING-
The magic winner of Britain’s got talent wasn’t the best. However, he won the competition.
His name is Richard Jones. The magical soldier delivered a brilliant performance by pulling off a card trick while telling the inspirational story of veteran Fergus Anckorn who, as a Japanese POW during the Second World War, kept up his comrades’ morale and got food from the guards with his illusions. His victory was marked by the 10 year celebration of the television show which has attracted Britain’s best talents over the years for our television screen. But it was also marred by the 9th position of dare devil, Alex Magala, who looked like an easy pick for the overall winner until social media users were convinced that his final act was deceitful because of an alleged wire used to give him a safety line whilst given false impressions that the act was genuine. Producers of the show insist it was genuine and the wire was there to support the pole , not his feet.
Without this lurking doubt, Magala was more impressive than eventual winner Jones, whose patriotic magic card tricks got him the eventual nod with the British public. Jones was good, but not as exceptional as 2015 BGT magic contestant, James Raven, who shocked the audience and viewers with an extraordinary set of magic displays. In the process, Simon Cowell admitted being converted into a believer of magic. The magic winner of Britain’s got talent was certainly not the best. He was good, and ended up winning, but not deservedly.
The show which has attracted the highest ratings of any TV show this year because of the amazing demonstration of weekly talent,. suffered a fall in viewings with 9.7m viewers tuning in to see Saturday’s grand final to see who would win a coveted slot at the Royal Variety Performance and the £250,000 cash prize. The X Factor, on the other hand, has struggled to match such ratings for the last five years . Jones was good and intriguing, but not quite ion the same league as James Moore, who in 2015 converted Simon Cowell into a believer of magic. He was truly and shockingly mind blowing in his unique set of tricks, blending originality with phenomenal brilliance.
AD: Capeesh Restaurant
AD: Heritage And Restaurant Lounge Bar
The show has endured its fair portion of criticism, more especially, the shortcomings of pretty Aleisha Dixon, interfering with other judges buttons, and facing cries and allegations of racism in her apparently harmless must misguided choice of words when referring to a black group as ‘chocolates’, resulting in a social media back clash. Judges should always present themselves with the highest level of integrity at all stages, and not compromise those high standards for the sake of self centered desires like preference of one act over the other. Influencing other judges to depart from their original choice of verdict is unethical and potentially fraudulent. Failings of this nature which have also been seen on its struggling sister show- x factor-has been the only eye sore of the show. Apart from that, Britain’s got talent has been an absolutely entertaining show to watch throughout the series, on which note we wish the show a happy 10th birthday.
