# Britain's Got Talent meets Les Miserables **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2009, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906 "2009-04-13T01:39:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/21 "2009-04-13T18:48:42Z")
Plus it’s so easy to lose your singing voice as you age, especially out of lack of practice. A 27-year-old still has a young voice, probably more recently had lessons and practical experience, and ought to do better if she wants to succeed on a show like that. This woman gave up her hopes for a career in the arts to take care of her ailing mother, and settled for a life as the spinster with a cat. It’s lovely to see her have that much of an impact on an audience, to have a magical night. ---
**Author:** ![Winnipeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ec9cab/32.png) [@Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winnipeg)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/22 "2009-04-13T18:58:28Z")
The only thing that would make her story better is if she had a fatal disease and died in Simon’s arms during the height of the applause. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/23 "2009-04-13T19:03:20Z")
I thought it was a wonderful video clip and it was very beautiful. I sent this link to some friends - a nice break from a cynical day. ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/24 "2009-04-13T22:50:33Z")
> [@Winnipeg](#): > > The only thing that would make her story better is if she had a fatal disease and died in Simon’s arms during the height of the applause. 😃 If that’s the sort of thing which tickles your funny bone, you should really try to see Peter Kay’s spoof on all things to do with reality TV talent competitiions. It’s called “_Britain’s Got the Pop Factor and Possibly a New Celebrity Jesus Christ Soapstar Superstar Strictly on Ice_” and it was on telly a year or so ago. Lot of that sort of stuff in there. PS From your name on here I am surmising that you are in Canada. If you really live in Leamington Spa, excuse me. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/25 "2009-04-13T22:55:30Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > I got more than misty eyed watching that, and don’t have any illusions about her potential for becoming a “star”; that’s ultimately trivial, anyway. “Hannah Montana” is a “star.” > > This is touching because it’s human and real: this utterly ordinary woman has something beautiful that’s been hidden away for decades, and then there’s this moment when her light comes out from under the fucking bushel: “Okay, look at _this_.” > > Outside of the context of the competetition (which is as banal and superficial as that sort of thing must inevitably be,) this is _beautiful_. If you think about it in terms of the values _defined_ by this sort of “star maker” program and by the entertainment industry in general, you sort of have your nose in the ashcan. Echoing everything you beautifully said, **Larry Mudd**. This had me crying, and it had nothing to do with being bowled away by her voice. Indeed, I don’t actually think her voice is awesome, but it’s certainly good enough, and waaaaay better than the obnoxious audience thought it was gonna be. (BTW, I don’t get their cynicism and rowdiness. Do people really think voice and appearance are inextricably linked? For some reason, I dunno why, I expected more from a British audience. I can’t imagine that amount of jeering in an American Idol episode, but admittedly I’ve never seen America’s Got Talent – maybe it’s more Gong Show-y like this?) ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/26 "2009-04-13T23:22:32Z")
I think some of of you are not quite appreciating the depths of cynicism that programmes such as Britain’s Got Talent are capable of. All the Lonely Spinster stuff - they will ramp that up to the maximum. The costume and make-up people probably went out of their way to make her look as dowdy as possible. Another potential Ugly Duckling fairy tale, hoorah. It does make for good telly, I’ll give you that. ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2009, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/27 "2009-04-13T23:40:45Z")
Also, these shows thrive on the terrible audition schtick…at least I guess that Britain’s Got Talent does, as all of the US shows do. They set up Susan Boyle to be one of those self-deluded crazies who tries out and is terrible. Instead she is wonderful. It makes for a great moment. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/28 "2009-04-15T07:16:52Z")
> [@GameHat](#): > > I smiled uncontrollably. What’s amazing is that Simon Cowell smiled uncontrollably. If a 92 year old grandma had walked on the stage on her walker and proceeded to do a triple backward somersault it would hardly have been more shocking. That’s a moment that’ll be replayed often in the years to come. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/29 "2009-04-15T15:29:02Z")
> [@choie](#): > > … > > (BTW, I don’t get their cynicism and rowdiness. Do people really think voice and appearance are inextricably linked? For some reason, I dunno why, I expected more from a British audience. I can’t imagine that amount of jeering in an American Idol episode, but admittedly I’ve never seen America’s Got Talent – maybe it’s more Gong Show-y like this?) The audience behaved exactly the same way as the audience for America’s Got Talent. Perhaps we’re not so different after all? There’s plenty of jerks on both sides of the pond. American Idol is a different story, the audience thinks everyone is wonderful and Simon Cowell is the one to be booed dare he say otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/30 "2009-04-15T16:14:08Z")
I think it’s wonderful for her, and I’m all for the “Yay underdog” moment, but am I alone when I say that I hate that fucking song? I’ve always thought it was a poorly written piece of noncohesive, all-over-the-place schlock. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/31 "2009-04-15T16:45:59Z")
> [@Scathach](#): > > She gave up trying to be a singer to look after her dead mother Doesn’t sound like much work! 😃 I like this clip but I certainly think they were playing up the “ugly duckling/beautiful voice” angle a bit too much. That had to have been planned out ahead of time. After all, are her less-than-average looks _really_ any reason to assume she’s a terrible singer? Honestly, without all that pre-performance buildup, I don’t think it would’ve even crossed my mind that she couldn’t sing. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/32 "2009-04-15T17:28:46Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > The audience behaved exactly the same way as the audience for America’s Got Talent. Perhaps we’re not so different after all? There’s plenty of jerks on both sides of the pond. > > American Idol is a different story, the audience thinks everyone is wonderful and Simon Cowell is the one to be booed dare he say otherwise. That must be the difference – as I said, I’ve never seen _America’s Got Talent_, so I was assuming the audience’s tone would be similar to AI. I guess it _is_ like the old _Gong Show_, then. Yuck. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/33 "2009-04-15T17:41:18Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > I think it’s wonderful for her, and I’m all for the “Yay underdog” moment, but am I alone when I say that I hate that fucking song? Yes, you are, and it is only as a service to your wife that I do not call Homeland Security and report you as a probable domestic terrorist. Actually I’ll admit I love that song, but largely it’s because I love _Les Mis_ and it’s a vital part. I’ll also freely admit it’s one of the most depressing things ever written. What I loved about Boyle’s version though is that usually it’s sung by 22 year old drama students… coming from a middle aged/overweight/unattractive woman who clearly has a hell-of-a-backstory, it’s 10 times more powerful. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/34 "2009-04-15T18:01:02Z")
I admit to appreciating how appropriate that song is for her, but the song itself is like “Stairway To Heaven”, but without the clever arrangement. Every time I hear it, I think, “Jeez, this again?” Then, instead of appreciating its context in _Les Mis_, I feel like I’m being dragged through a morass of cheesy songwriting. No offense, Jon. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/35 "2009-04-15T18:12:32Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > What’s amazing is that Simon Cowell smiled uncontrollably. No matter how manipulative the producers were with the setup, the judges were truly surprised (or else very good actors). What amazed me was that Simon was in Britain. How often does he fly? LA to London is not a short flight. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/36 "2009-04-15T18:40:08Z")
I’ll admit that I’ve never seen this clip, but I’ve heard her singing from the TV in the other room for what feels like about a year now, but obviously is only a couple of weeks (because she’s been on every morning/afternoon talk show). Not having actually SEEN her (and still not actually having seen her, since I can’t play video at work), my initial reaction to it out of context was that, well…she sounds like really good karaoke. Her pitch is unstable, for one thing. And she’s got good tone, but nothing amazing. I seriously wondered why the cheering started. Now I know it’s all visuals. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/37 "2009-04-15T18:53:51Z")
> [@jovan](#): > > I’m really sorry for doing this, but I nearly risked a cynicism overdose watching this video. Of course, it was everything I expected: Paul Potts 2.0. > > I don’t mean to take anything away from Ms. Boyle or the people who have been moved by the clip, but this is television, not music. The judges didn’t “eat crow”, they played at eating crow because they know and Mr. Potts confirmed that the ugly duckling sells. They needed to throw a bit of mud at her because that’s what the script called for. > > There’s so much manipulation going on that it’s very difficult to form any sort of opinion about Ms. Boyle’s music. As a matter of fact, it’s very clear that to the producers of the show it’s not very important, hence the cheers, applause, gasps, fist pumping, close ups of tearful audience members and judges, all of which mask the song and the emotions it’s meant to convey. > > Anyway, sorry for the random media criticism, but I found this just too manipulative and identical in almost every way to the Paul Potts segment. Of course, if Ms. Boyle does turn out to be able to reach people in a real concert or record, that’s great for her and her new-found fans. I have mixed feelings. I smiled at the video and I wish her the absolute best, but I admit similar thoughts went through my head. Somewhere along the way, I got the impression that the pre-screeners on American Idol forward the judges notes on whether or not a contestant is good, so I would assume they do the same on a show like Britain’s Got Talent. I can’t imagine this was truly as much of a surprise for the judges as it was made out to be. > [@Ogre](#): > > am I alone when I say that I hate that fucking song? I’ve always thought it was a poorly written piece of noncohesive, all-over-the-place schlock. You just described over 99% of show tunes. ---
**Author:** ![Scathach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Scathach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scathach)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/38 "2009-04-15T18:58:11Z")
> [@Scathach](#): > > I > She gave up trying to be a singer to look after her dead mother > [@Stephe96](#): > > Doesn’t sound like much work! 😃 Whoops! Can’t believe I missed that. Quite the mental image though… ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/39 "2009-04-15T19:58:43Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > What amazed me was that Simon was in Britain. How often does he fly? LA to London is not a short flight. If he’s on one of his live shows in America at the moment, that can easily be explained if you know that the Britain’s Got Talent programmes that have just started are at the audition phase. The auditions were filmed in January and February of this year. If you want trans-Atlantic commuting on a silly scale, see Dancing with the Stars/Strictly Come Dancing. There is a portion of the year where those live shows overlap. Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli cross the Atlantic twice a week. And Len Goodman is no spring chicken! ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906/40 "2009-04-15T20:24:59Z")
This all brings to mind the movie **[Little Voice](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0147004/)**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britains-got-talent-meets-les-miserables/492906.md?page=3)