# Paul Potts on Britian's Got Talent **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 15, 2007, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160 "2007-06-15T20:13:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2007, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/1 "2007-06-15T20:13:10Z")
I caught this via Brit Hume on Fox News who got it from YouTube…my God! Watch the [video](http://youtube.com/watch?v=1k08yxu57NA)…you will be blown away. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2007, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/2 "2007-06-15T20:25:23Z")
There’s a lengthy discussion about him over in the [Your favorite Youtube video (new thread)](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=424139) thread, along with a link to his semi-final performance. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2007, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/3 "2007-06-15T20:29:27Z")
Dammit…I searched for Paul Potts and everything. ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/4 "2007-06-16T05:03:36Z")
Was about to make a joke about Pol Pot, but then watched the vid. That was epic, gotta say. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/5 "2007-06-16T05:07:51Z")
More than his singing ability (which is jaw-dropping), it’s his bravery that’s inspiring. He knows that he’s just a working class schlub with bad teeth, and that Simon whatsisface picks his teeth with contestants, and he got up there and sang his heart out. Damn, but I’d buy that man a drink any day. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/6 "2007-06-16T05:24:10Z")
[QUOTE=phouka] More than his singing ability (which is jaw-dropping), it’s his bravery that’s inspiring. He knows that he’s just a working class schlub with bad teeth, and that Simon whatsisface picks his teeth with contestants, and he got up there and sang his heart out. Damn, but I’d buy that man a drink any day. [/QUOTE] He’s talented, but he’s not “just” a working class “schlub.” He’s been training for years, and touring in Italy with a top Italian company. His teachers include Luciano Pavorotti, as well as several other singers who I’ve never heard of but who I gather are right up there. This is what Wikipedia says, anyway. I don’t mean to detract from the guy’s talent or his performance, but the presentation was edited to make it appear as though he just came out of nowhere singing like that on his own, and as though he’d never had an opportunity to perform seriously before. (“It’s always been my dream to sing!” edited to make it seem as though he means he’s never sung before.) In fact he’s sung on _TV_ before. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/7 "2007-06-16T06:10:28Z")
[QUOTE=Frylock] I don’t mean to detract from the guy’s talent or his performance, but the presentation was edited to make it appear as though he just came out of nowhere singing like that on his own, and as though he’d never had an opportunity to perform seriously before. (“It’s always been my dream to sing!” edited to make it seem as though he means he’s never sung before.) In fact he’s sung on _TV_ before. [/QUOTE] Well shatt, you should detract from it then, 'cause it was apparently total bullshit. Feh. ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/8 "2007-06-16T06:26:02Z")
Ayup, he was a ringer, per his Wiki bio. What a travesty, contrived bullshit of a show. Sorta like putting Christy Aguilerra on AI as an amateur. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2007, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/9 "2007-06-16T09:08:23Z")
Bit of an own goal for the producers. It might not matter quite so much if there was just a mild clash between how the producers choose to slant the show in the edit ('These are all amateurs from nowhere!) and the fact that Paul has in fact had a lot of pro or semi-pro experience. But it goes a little bit further than that. I think it was the semi-final where Simon Cowell gave a big heartwarming speech - more or less a ‘statement of policy’ - about how the show was all about discovering someone who is just an ordinary Joe, doing a humdrum job somewhere, who turns out to have a hidden talent. Cowell is of course not just a judge but also the executive producer, so his statement should carry some weight. Doesn’t look too good if the ordinary Joe turns out to be someone with Paul’s level of prior experience. It’s been quite a strange show. Having the auditions in front of a live audience made a big difference. As usual, the choices and selections seem utterly imponderable. Zeus knows what the judges saw in the middle-aged, overweight Madonna wannabe who didn’t even sing, and who at the semi final stage was more or less stoned off the stage by the audience. Or those women with the ‘dancing dogs’ who didn’t have a routine for the semi-final. It’s a shame to think these people took semi-final places that were denied to other acts. ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/10 "2007-06-17T02:45:06Z")
Meh, upon further review it seems he wasn’t really a pro, but paid for all that stuff, the tour and everything, so I guess he still rocks, great YouTube stuff still I gotta say. I’d vote for him. ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/11 "2007-06-17T02:47:25Z")
[QUOTE=ianzin] But it goes a little bit further than that. I think it was the semi-final where Simon Cowell gave a big heartwarming speech - more or less a ‘statement of policy’ - about how the show was all about discovering someone who is just an ordinary Joe, doing a humdrum job somewhere, who turns out to have a hidden talent. [/QUOTE] Nahh, it was that other guy on the panel, whoever he is, never seen him before. Who is that broad anyway, she’s kinda hot, cuter than Pauler gotta say. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/12 "2007-06-17T02:55:30Z")
[QUOTE=Operation Ripper] Nahh, it was that other guy on the panel, whoever he is, never seen him before. Who is that broad anyway, she’s kinda hot, cuter than Pauler gotta say. [/QUOTE] Are you referring to [Amanda Holden?](http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/people/amanda_holden_person_page.shtml) She certainly is a hottie. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/13 "2007-06-17T02:59:08Z")
The other judge is Piers Morgan, a former newspaper editor. He has been involved in various scandals [faking pictures](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3716151.stm) and[lots of others](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3713857.stm) ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/14 "2007-06-17T03:04:50Z")
[QUOTE=glee] The other judge is Piers Morgan, a former newspaper editor. He has been involved in various scandals [faking pictures](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3716151.stm) and[lots of others](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3713857.stm) [/QUOTE] I say, he’s a bit of wanker then isn’t he? ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/15 "2007-06-17T08:07:24Z")
[QUOTE=Operation Ripper] I say, he’s a bit of wanker then isn’t he? [/QUOTE] The general opinion of the nation re Morgan was best summed up by Stephen Fry, who once defined ‘countryside’ as ‘a legal term meaning to murder Piers Morgan’. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/16 "2007-06-17T09:58:55Z")
I wouldn’t put a lot of stock in a Wiki article thrown up a few days ago. And I certainly wouldn’t refer to anything in it as “fact”. For one thing, it doesn’t jibe with an interview Paul gave to NPR (linked in the other thread), in which he said he’d had a few lessons, the last of which was some six years ago. No, he didn’t just roll out of bed the morning of the auditions deciding that he’d sing opera that day. But he certainly hasn’t had anything like a career with it. ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/17 "2007-06-17T10:15:25Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] I wouldn’t put a lot of stock in a Wiki article thrown up a few days ago. And I certainly wouldn’t refer to anything in it as “fact”. [/QUOTE] I dunno. A lot of the information in the Wiki article comes from the Bath Opera website. There’s a bio of the bloke [here.](http://www.bathopera.org/2003_Aida/Biographies.html) > [@](#): > > A student of Ian Comboy, Paul has appeared on national and local television and radio. He has spent two summers touring Northern Italy training with one of the major opera schools, and has taken part in masterclasses with Vilma Vernocchi, Katia Ricciarelli and Luciano Pavarotti. He has also performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. With Bath Opera he has sung the roles of Don Basilio (Marriage of Figaro), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) and the title role in Verdi’s Don Carlos. Future plans include the role of Chevalier des Grieux (Manon Lescaut) for Southgate Opera, London, and another concert with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in the summer. ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/18 "2007-06-17T10:24:20Z")
And, yes, I accept that the Bath Opera gigs were amateur and don’t really think that the bloke himself has been dishonest about his background. The producers of the show do appear to have been a wee bit manipulative about things though. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/19 "2007-06-17T10:27:20Z")
[QUOTE=ianzin] The general opinion of the nation re Morgan was best summed up by Stephen Fry, who once defined ‘countryside’ as ‘a legal term meaning to murder Piers Morgan’. [/QUOTE] 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160/20 "2007-06-17T16:23:11Z")
[QUOTE=Kal] And, yes, I accept that the Bath Opera gigs were amateur and don’t really think that the bloke himself has been dishonest about his background. The producers of the show do appear to have been a wee bit manipulative about things though. [/QUOTE] Oh, well, lordy. That goes without saying. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-potts-on-britians-got-talent/408160.md?page=2)