Britain's Got Talent is a British talent reality television series that first aired in 2007. As of 2 June 2019, there have been thirteen completed series. The show has been spun off around the world under the Got Talent franchise. The competition is open to people of all ages who possess a talent. After the initial rounds of auditions, successful contestants are narrowed down by the judges.
In the first series, 24 contestants made it into the three semi-finals, and in subsequent series this has been increased to 40 (45 in series 6–10) contestants across five live shows. The act which receives the most public votes in each semi-final goes through to the final, with the second finalist being decided by the judges from the second and third most popular contestants. In series 6, a "wildcard" element was introduced. This is where judges pick an eliminated act from the semi-finals, and that act is sent through to the final. In series 6, the wildcard act selected was The Mend. In series 7, the wildcard was Steve Hewlett and in series 8,al Jon Clegg. Series 9 featured a second wildcard, voted for by the public from the five acts who lost the judges' vote in the semi-finals.[1] The judges' wildcard was Boyband and the public's wildcard was Jessie-Jane McParland. In series 10, the judges chose Shannon + Peter whilst the public chose Trip Hazard. In series 11, the format returned to series 8. The wildcard was Simon Cowell's golden buzzer Sarah Ikumu. In series 12, B Positive Choir was the wildcard. In series 13, dancing couple Libby and Charlie were the wildcards. In Series 14, there were no wildcards, so there were only 10 acts in the final
In the final, each of the finalists perform again, but this time the result is determined purely from the public vote, with the winner receiving £250,000 (£100,000 in series 1–5, £500,000 in series 6) and the chance to perform their act at the Royal Variety Performance.
Opera singer Paul Potts won the first series of the competition in 2007, street dancer George Sampson won the second series in 2008, dance troupe Diversity won the third series in 2009, gymnast troupe Spelbound won the fourth series in 2010, singer Jai McDowall won the fifth series in 2011, dancing dog act Ashleigh and Pudsey won the sixth series in 2012, shadow theatre group, Attraction won the seventh series in 2013, classical singers Collabro won the eighth series in 2014, and musical canine freestyle act Jules O'Dwyer & Matisse won the ninth series in 2015. Magician Richard Jones won the tenth series in 2016. Pianist Tokio Myers won the eleventh series in 2017. Comedian Lost Voice Guy won the twelfth series in 2018. Korean War Veteran and Singing Chelsea Pensioner Colin Thackery won the thirteenth series in 2019. Pianist, singer and comedian Jon Courtenay won the fourteenth series in 2020. Comedian Axel Blake won the fifteenth series in 2022, whilst comedian Viggo Venn won the sixteenth series in 2023. In 2024, Singer Sydnie Christmas won the seventeenth series.
For more details on each of the contestants, see the relevant series article.
| Name | Series | Act | Finished | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Grand | 3 | Singing duo | |||
| 4MG | 13 | Magicians | |||
| 5 Star Boys | 15 | Contemporary Dance Group | |||
| 100 Voices of Gospel | 10 | Gospel choir | |||
| Aaron and Jasmine | 14 | Dance Duo | |||
| Aidan McCann | 14 | Magician | |||
| Alex Magala | 10 | Sword-swallower | |||
| Amber and the Dancing Collies | 15 | Dog act | |||
| Amy Lou | 16 | Singer | |||
| Aneeshwar Kunchala | 15 | Poet | |||
| Aquabatique | 6 | Synchronised swimmers | |||
| Arisxandra | 7 | Singer | |||
| 7 | Singer | ||||
| Ashleigh and Pudsey | 6 | Dancing dog act | |||
| 7 | Shadow theatre group | ||||
| The Addict Initiative | 8 | Dance troupe | |||
| Axel Blake | 15 | Stand Up Comedian | |||
| 12 | Choir | ||||
| Balance Unity | 10 | Dancer | |||
| 1 | Juggling | Finalist | |||
| 8 | Singing/rapping duo | ||||
| Beau Dermott | 10 | Musical theatre singer | |||
| 13 | Magician | ||||
| Ben Nickless | 15 | Impressionist | |||
| Boogie Storm | 10 | Dance troupe | |||
| Boyband | 9 | Dance troupe | 12th | [2] | |
| 3 | Singer | ||||
| 4 | Impressionist | ||||
| 9 | Singer | [3] | |||
| 13 | Singer | ||||
| 7 | Stand-up comedian | ||||
| 11 | Stand-up comedian | ||||
| Cheeky Monkeys | 2 | Child dance duo | Finalist | ||
| 8 | Impressionist | ||||
| 9 | Welsh choir | ||||
| 8 | Classical singers | ||||
| 5 | Singer/guitarist | [4] [5] | |||
| Dave & Finn | 13 | Dog trainer & mentalist | |||
| 4 | Child singers | ||||
| Calum Courtney | 12 | Singer | |||
| Cillian O'Connor | 16 | Magician | |||
| Craig Ball | 10 | Impressionist singer | |||
| 1 | Musical theatre performer | Finalist | |||
| 4 | Singer | ||||
| The D-Day Darlings | 12 | Vocal group | |||
| Donchez Dacres | 12 | Singer | |||
| Danny Posthill | 9 | Impressionist | |||
| Damien O'Brien | 14 | Magician | |||
| Darcy Oake | 8 | Magician | |||
| 3 | Streetdancer | ||||
| 3 | Streetdance troupe | ||||
| DNA | 11 | Mentalists | |||
| Duo Odyssey | 16 | Aerial Duo | |||
| DVJ | 12 | Street dance troupe | |||
| Matt Edwards | 11 | Comedy magician | |||
| Entity Allstars | 9 | Dance troupe | |||
| Flakefleet Primary School | 13 | Choir | |||
| 2 | String quartet | Finalist | |||
| Eva Abley | 15 | Stand Up Comedian | |||
| Flawless | 3 | Streetdance troupe | |||
| Flintz & T4ylor | 15 | Rapper & Pianist | |||
| 7 | Impressionist | ||||
| 7 | Singer/rapper | ||||
| 4 | Drummer | ||||
| 5 | Pianist | [6] | |||
| Ghetto Kids | 16 | Dance Group | |||
| Giang Brothers | 12 | Acrobatic balancing duo | |||
| 13 | Escape artist | ||||
| 5 | Impressionist | [7] | |||
| Libby & Charlie | 13 | Child dancers | |||
| Marc McMullan | 13 | Opera Singer | |||
| 5 | Breakdancer/Body-Popping | ||||
| 5 | Comedy dancer | [8] | |||
| 7 | Ventriloquist | ||||
| 9 | Pianist | ||||
| Sarah Ikumu | 11 | Singer | |||
| 5 | Dancer | ||||
| Jack & Tim | 12 | Guitarists | |||
| James and Dylan Piper | 14 | Magician Duo | |||
| Jamie Leahey | 15 | Ventriloquist | |||
| Jamie Raven | 9 | Magician | |||
| 3 | Child Singer | ||||
| Jasmine Elcock | 10 | Singer | |||
| Jasper Cherry | 14 | Magician | |||
| Jessie-Jane McParland | 9 | Martial artist | |||
| Jonathan and Charlotte | 6 | Opera duo | |||
| Jon Courtenay | 14 | Comic Singer & Pianist | |||
| 2 | Child Soprano | ||||
| Kai and Natalia | 6 | Ballroom dancers | |||
| 2 | Musical canine freestyle | Finalist | |||
| Micky P Kerr | 12 | Comedic guitarist | |||
| Lucy & Trip Hazard | 10 | Dancing dog | |||
| Lucy Kay | 8 | Opera singer | |||
| 6 | Singer/guitarist | ||||
| Kombat Breakers | 1 | Dance troupe | Finalist | ||
| Lettice Rowbotham | 8 | Violinist | |||
| Lillianna Clifton | 16 | Contemporary Dancer | |||
| 12 | Comedian | [9] | |||
| 15 | Singer | ||||
| 6 | Acoustic vocal group | ||||
| 7 | Vocal group | ||||
| 5 | Singer | ||||
| 9 | Musical canine freestyle | ||||
| Jordan O'Keefe | 7 | Singer/guitarist | |||
| Liam McNally | 4 | Child Soprano | |||
| Malakai Bayoh | 16 | Opera Singer | |||
| 5 | Organist | [10] | |||
| Maxwell Thorpe | 15 | Opera Singer | |||
| 4 | Dancer | ||||
| 6 | Boy band | ||||
| Mel & Jamie | 10 | Singers | [11] [12] | ||
| MerseyGirls | 11 | Dancers | |||
| Missing People Choir | 11 | Choir | |||
| Andrew Muir | 2 | Singer | Finalist | ||
| Musa Motha | 16 | Contemporary Dancer | |||
| 11 | Pianist | [13] | |||
| The Neales | 9 | Vocal group | |||
| Nemesis | 2 | Dance troupe | Finalist | ||
| New Bounce | 5 | Child Singers | |||
| Nu Sxool | 6 | Dance troupe | |||
| Olivia Lynes | 16 | Musical Theatre Singer | |||
| 9 | Dance troupe | ||||
| Only Boys Aloud | 6 | Male choir | |||
| Paddy & Nico | 8 | Salsa dancers | |||
| 7 | Opera duo | ||||
| 6 | Singer-songwriter/guitarist | ||||
| 8 | Singing group | ||||
| 5 | Child Singer | ||||
| The Pensionalities | 11 | Singers | |||
| 1 | Opera Singer | ||||
| 6 | Singer | ||||
| 10 | Close-up magician | [14] | |||
| 2 | Streetdancer | ||||
| 1 | Puppeteer | Finalist | |||
| Pre Skool | 7 | Dance troupe | |||
| Shannon & Peter | 10 | Contemporary dancers | |||
| 2 | Bhanghra dancers | ||||
| Issy Simpson | 11 | Child magician | |||
| James Smith | 8 | Singer | |||
| 13 | Comedic pianist | ||||
| 2 | Classical Singer | Finalist | |||
| 3 | Saxophonist | ||||
| 3 | Child Singer | ||||
| 4 | Gymnastic troupe | ||||
| 3 | Comedy dance duo | ||||
| 3 | Child singer/dancer | ||||
| 4 | Singer | ||||
| Strike | 2 | Martial arts demo | Finalist | ||
| 1 | Child Singer | Finalist | |||
| Tom Ball | 15 | Singer | |||
| Tonikaku | 16 | Comedian | |||
| Kyle Tomlinson | 11 | Singer | |||
| Travis George | 16 | Musical Theatre Singer | |||
| UDI | 9 | Electronic light dance troupe | |||
| Robert White | 12 | Comedic singer/keyboardist | |||
| 10 | Swing singer | ||||
| Ned Woodman | 11 | Child Stand-up comedian | |||
| Gruffydd Wyn Roberts | 12 | Opera singer | |||
| Yanis Marshall, Arnaud & Mehdi | 8 | Dance troupe | |||
| Tina and Chandi | 4 | Dancing Dog act | |||
| 4 | Dance duo | ||||
| 16 | Comedian | ||||
| X | 13 | Mentalist |