‘BGT’ Winner George Sampson’s Miraculous Return For ‘BGT: Champions’
Tom Dymond/REX Reading Time: 2 minutes
Former BGT winner George Sampson makes an emotional return for the Champions season this week. The dancer, who won the show in 2008 when he was 14 years old, sustained a back injury which could have left him unable to dance again.
After surgery, George is back and ready to try for the BGT: Champions title. His latest performance, which will air this Saturday, is a nostalgic look back at his time on the BGT stage.
Who Is George Sampson?
George got on BGT after his second time trying out. He was just 14 years old at the time of his audition, and had previously been busking on the street. His dance skills brought him all the way to the finals, where he performed an iconic routine to a remixed “Singin’ in the Rain.”
George has since gotten into acting, appearing in television shows like Waterloo Road and Mount Pleasant. About a year after winning BGT, George sustained a back injury, and was told by doctors that he might never dance again.
“I love dance, that’s all I ever wanted to do. To be told bluntly, ‘no’, was devastating,” George said, according to The Mirror.
George Sampson Returns To ‘BGT’
The dancer underwent surgery on his back, explaining, “I’m stubborn. There was no chance I was going to stop dancing. It’s been a long road to recovery, but I’ve worked hard and I’m back.”
His performance on BGT: The Champions appears to tell his story. George, who is now 26, dances with a young boy who is set up like a busker. He then joins another young dancer who is dressed like he was at his audition, and then another wearing his finals outfit.
The Mirror reports that judge David Walliams called George a “real-life Billy Elliot,” explaining, “At the end of the film you see that he’s turned into a beautiful swan – and that is what has happened to you. You are a superstar.”
You can watch George’s performance on BGT: The Champions this Saturday on ITV.
