What Happened to the Winners of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’?
ITV Reading Time: 5 minutes
Britain’s Got Talent has aired for 14 seasons, and we’ve seen so many talented winners take home the prize over the years. But what are those champions doing these days? With Season 15 of the show coming up soon, let’s take a look at where the winners are in 2022.
Where Are the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Winners Now?
1. Paul Potts
This opera singer became the first-ever Britain’s Got Talent winner in 2007. Since then, he’s released seven studio albums and competed on America’s Got Talent: The Champions in 2019. Recently, he appeared as Koala on the German Masked Singer.
2. George Sampson
This dancer won the show in 2008, when he was just 14 years old. Now 28, Sampson has performed on the West End and appeared in the movie StreetDance 3D, among other movies and series. He also competed on BGT: The Champions in 2019. Sampson currently appears in the musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.
3. Diversity
This dance troupe, led by choreographer Ashley Banjo, won the third season of BGT. Banjo was a guest judge on Season 14 of BGT in 2020, filling in for Simon Cowell. During that season, the group performed a powerful routine inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. The group is currently traveling the UK on their new Connected tour.
4. Spelbound
After winning Season 4 of BGT, this gymnastics troupe performed at the London 2012 Olympics, as well as on The Royal Variety Performance. After this, the final four members of the group left. Controversy followed in later years. In 2015, the group’s coach Neil Griffiths was arrested over allegations of child cruelty, but the charges were dropped.
5. Jai McDowall
This singer won Season 5 of BGT in 2011. Now 35, McDowall has released one studio album and two EPs, as well as several singles. He competed on BGT: The Champions in 2019. Last year, he dropped a cover of John Legend’s song “All of Me” to mark 10 years since he won the show. McDowall also performs on stage, and currently appears in a show with Jonathan Ansell.
6. Ashleigh & Pudsey
Ashleigh Butler and her dog Pudsey won Season 6 in 2012. They continued to appear on stage and television after their win, and even starred in Pudsey the Dog: The Movie. Sadly, Pudsey passed away in 2017. Butler returned to the stage for BGT: The Champions in 2019 with her dog Sully. She also wrote a dog training book called Happy Puppy, Happy Dog.
7. Attraction
This shadow theatre group from Hungary won Season 7 of the show in 2013. In 2019, they competed on AGT: The Champions and put on a live show called The Box. They later performed on the BGT Christmas special in 2020.
8. Collabro
This singing group won Season 8 of the show in 2014. After their win, they released their debut album Stars. They’ve since released five more albums and competed on both BGT: The Champions and AGT: The Champions. Richard Hadfield left the group in 2016, and they currently have four members. In 2020, they released the album Christmas Is Here, with a single of the same name.
9. Jules O’Dwyer & Matisse
Trainer Jules O’Dwyer and her Border Collie Matisse won Season 9 in 2015. There was some controversy surrounding the fact that the trainer’s other dog Chase, not Matisse, performed the big tightrope move in the final act. However, O’Dwyer returned to perform in the next season with all three of her dogs, calling herself Jules, Matisse & Friends. Since then, O’Dwyer and her dogs have moved to Belgium.
10. Richard Jones
This magician and soldier won Season 10 of the show in 2016. The next year, he had a show on ITV called Operation Magic. Jones remained in the British Army, traveling the world performing magic. In 2019, Jones competed on BGT: The Champions and on the Italian show Tú sí que vales. He also performed in the BGT Christmas special in 2020.
11. Tokio Myers
This pianist won Season 11 of the show in 2017. Later that year, he released his debut single “Bloodstream” and his first album Our Generation. Myers also competed on AGT: The Champions in 2019, and he has a BBC Radio series called Piano Flow. His Instagram bio states that he’s finishing two new albums.
12. Lost Voice Guy
This comedian, whose real name is Lee Ridley, won Season 12 of the show in 2018. Ridley has cerebral palsy and uses a speech device. He’s since released a book titled I’m Only In It For The Parking and competed on AGT: The Champions. Earlier this year, the company CereProc helped develop a Geordie accent for Ridley’s voice synthesizer.
13. Colin Thackery
In 2019, this singer became the oldest BGT winner at age 89. He released his album Love Changes Everything later that year. Thackery also performed during the 2020 BGT Christmas special. After winning, Thackery shared his intention to donate part of his prize money to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, where he moved after his wife’s death in 2016.
14. Jon Courtenay
The show’s most recent winner is musical comedian Jon Courtenay, who made the judges laugh in 2020. Later that year, he closed the BGT Christmas special. Courtenay revealed in 2021 that he had been battling skin cancer during his time on the show. To raise awareness, he released a new song called “The Mole Song.”
