Britain’s Got Talent | Interview with Simon Cowell

You’re back with the gang after a year off, how did that feel?

Great! It felt really good. As much as I didn’t want to not make the show last year, we just couldn’t at that point, it would have been literally impossible. We had to stop it at the last moment, it was a difficult decision to make but it was the right one. I think off the back of that, when we did all get back together, I think we realised how much we enjoy making the show. We did miss each other, we get on and work well together.

Was it weird for you not filming the show last year?

Yeah, it was hard but I’ve got to be honest, because of what was happening at the time, which was the new variant had come out, I got really nervous about it. We were about two or three weeks out from auditions and I just thought, ‘We can’t do this, the risk to everyone is too high’. So it was tough, but I knew it was the right thing to do because it wasn’t like the show was never going to come back. We always knew it would come back this year and it would come round quickly, which it did. So I missed it but I had no choice. I hope that break, having not had it on air for a year, that the audience will like it even more, I hope they missed it.

Was it awkward having the friends and family of contestants sat right behind you?

Sometimes when we said no, yeah! Especially when you’ve got the mums and dads sat there. But I actually kind of liked it!

What was it like having the audience back?

It made such a difference. You only have to see the reaction from everyone during auditions to realise what this show means to people. I think this show is a reminder that there is more that unites us than divides us. It literally is that, everyone gets on, everyone was optimistic. It felt happy and fun, that was something that was really important this year after lockdown and what we’ve all been through. The show had to come back as a fun show, it’s what we’ve all missed. There’s nothing else like it on TV. So, I really feel like everything we set out to do, we’ve achieved. Honestly, I couldn’t have asked for more. It’s everything I wanted and there was just this real sense of relief and fun. It was incredible.

What do you make of the talent this year?

I have to say, the contestants are brilliant, we have seen so many good acts this year. So many great stories have come out of auditions too. I think sometimes having the little break that we did is a positive thing. I think they realised how important the show is to them because they need a show like this for whatever they want to achieve in their lives. Everyone felt more excited about it.

Fans will meet a busker called Maxwell who certainly blew everyone away…

I loved him. I thought he was brilliant and it was very much like the Paul Potts moment. It was a real surprise, I had no idea he was going to sing like that. He was so shy and I was praying it was going to work out for him. He chose a fantastic song, I looked around at the audience to see how they were reacting and it was just incredible the response he got. I’ve seen a small clip of it back and he’s absolutely amazing. That was a big moment.

Did you have an idea of what kind of act you wanted for your Golden Buzzer?

No, genuinely it’s an in the moment feeling. You don’t think too much about it beforehand but then you see something and you just feel the need to give the act your Golden Buzzer. The act I gave my Golden Buzzer to this year I just loved instantly. They surprised me how much I loved it. It’s the best feeling when you get it right. I went early again, it was day one that I pressed my buzzer.

What can fans expect from the live shows?

I think this year we’ve got to work really, really hard to see a development from the first audition to the live show. Everyone has to try and be better, I’m not going to lie, that’s the toughest part of making the show, getting someone you loved from the auditions to step it up a notch for the live shows. It’s a real challenge and we’ve just got to work really hard at that.

Have you enjoyed being able to interact with the audience again?

It’s just the best feeling. You don’t realise how important the audience is until you don’t have one. Then having them back was incredible. It’s really hard to make this show without an audience. We always say they are the fifth judge, they really are because a lot of the time we base our decision on the audience, when they love someone we’re more inclined to say yes, when they’re quiet we’re more inclined to say no. So they really do hold a lot of power on this show. There’s something special watching and feeling the audience reaction to an act when they realise they are seeing something special. It’s the best feeling.