Britain’s Got Talent is back and Geordies Ant and Dec talk to Susan Griffin about joining the judges

THERE’S bound to be tantrums and plenty of tears, but will there be talent? Simon Cowell and co certainly think so – though they don’t always agree on its form. Cowell might be a dad now, but it’s doubtful he’s softened, so watch out for the scathing remarks when he joins David Walliams, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden on the judging panel as they scour the nation for new talent once again.

While they’ll continue to say yes to acts that impress, and buzz off those that fail to make the mark, this year they will also be able to use the new Golden Buzzer, giving acts an automatic place in the live semi-finals. So what else can viewers expect? The BGT team share some teasers...

Ant and Dec

THIS time round, the Geordie presenters got to sit on the judging panel while Cowell took some time off.

“Having sat in the chair, I can understand the pain the judges are in sometimes,” says Ant, who admits he ended up buzzing one comedian just because “he just rambled on”.

“It was really hard,” echoes Dec, “because we’d been talking to all the acts backstage, so to go and sit at the judges’ desk and hit the buzzer was tough. You end up immediately apologising to the act.” The addition of the Golden Buzzer is “brilliant”, he adds.

“It’s a beautiful moment on stage when the buzzer’s pressed and the audience go wild and get right behind the act.”

The duo, both 38, say they’re always “chomping at the bit” to see what’s in store. “And this year Britain’s surprised us again,” says Ant, who’d love to see a magician or comedian win.

“We always have so much fun doing the auditions, going round the country and meeting all the acts and seeing what Britain’s got to offer,” Dec notes. “It’s been another vintage year, another great crop of talent and we can’t wait for everybody to see.”

David Walliams

SOME of the show’s funniest moments don’t happen on stage, but rather in Walliams’ attempts to embarrass Cowell. “I’m the thorn in his side, and I know the audience like to see him bought down a peg or two,” says the comedian, who admits the dynamic’s changed this year. “A wedge has come between us in the shape of a baby. I feel he should have impregnated me.” jokes the 42-year-old, who describes the relationship between the judges as being like a family, “albeit a dysfunctional one”.

Simon Cowell

THE brains behind the show knows exactly why Britain’s Got Talent goes from strength to strength.

“I think it’s loved because it’s old school, it’s unpredictable, it doesn’t take itself too seriously and you always get those magic moments where you just don’t expect,” says Cowell, 54.

One act really delighted the new dad. “We’ve found these incredible motorbike stunt riders, I’m amazed that half of them didn’t get killed.”

Amanda Holden

HOLDEN, 43, is the only judge who’s been part of the show since it started in 2007. “When people say this is your eighth year I question it all the time, but then I remember absolutely the day that I got the job; I was stirring soup and Lexi (her daughter) had just turned one,” she recalls, adding she had no idea what it would turn into. “Simon completely undersold it. He said it was just a tester show.”

Now it’s the project people remember her for. “Obviously that’s great, I’m not knocking that but I think people sometimes forget I was an actress,” says Holden, who admits it helped change public opinion of her. “I think people always had me down as a ‘minxy’ husband-stealer,” she confesses.

Alesha Dixon

DIXON, 35, who like Cowell has become a parent since the last series, says: “It was difficult to leave my daughter (Azura) for the first audition day, as I hadn’t really spent any time apart from her..”

She’s resolved to be tougher this year and was looking for someone who can be an international success: “As well as an amazing talent, they also need to have a great personality and a story. This show’s about people and connecting – there needs to be something that will make viewers at home pick up the phone and vote.”