'Rarely has a television show been more badly misnamed than Britain's Got Talent.

The producers might like to pretend the programme is inspired by the quest for entertainment gold. But, in truth, the base metal of cynical exploitation lies at its heart.

It is a celebration of banality and eccentricity, not of genuine talent.
In this modern version of the Victorian freak show, too many of the contestants have neither the real star-quality nor the psychological equipment to cope with the sustained, harsh glare of the public spotlight.

Britain's Got Talent reflects some of the worst traits of so-called 'reality television'.
Like its close relation Big Brother, this show is all about manipulating the eagerness for celebrity among vulnerable, often desperate people.

The more tears, humiliation, conflict and embarrassment, the more the public loves it.

The three star judges - Piers Morgan, Amanda Holden and Simon Cowell - keep telling us that this awesome success is based on the British public's desire to be cheered up in the midst of a recession.
There may be an element of truth in this, but I fear there are darker, less uplifting forces at work; a combination of smug mockery mixed with sentimentality, vulgarity and titillation


The prime victim of this show's contempt for morality is Susan Boyle

Her simplicity and otherworldliness - qualities that were a large part of her appeal - have also left her exposed

She is said to have shouted foulmouthed abuse at a TV screen in a public lounge after Piers Morgan, upon whom she has confessed she has a crush, showered praise on her rival for the title, the 12-year-old singer Shaheen Jafargholi.

All this serves only to boost the profile of Britain's Got Talent. As with Big Brother, the greater the controversy, the higher the ratings.

The producers of Britain's Got Talent are no doubt revelling in all this hysteria and the rivalry between Susan and the other leading contestants'

By David Wilson, former psychologist on Big Brother
29th May 2009

and Piers Morgan's part in boosting the rivalry that appears to have caused Susan Boyle's anguish after he had 'flirted with her and asked her out on a 'date'?

What he told one newspaper about Stavos Flatley -

"always had a soft spot for the father and son dance duo.
"They are my funniest and favourite act ever," enthuses Piers

on the TV about Shaheen Jafargholi

his had been "the best singing performance we have heard in the semi-finals so far".