By Rory Reynolds
@ the MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival
Britain’s Got Talent hosts Ant and Dec leapt to the defence of the show after it was slammed for its treatment of Scots singing sensation Susan Boyle.
Blackburn-born Boyle, 48, ended up in The Priory after becoming an overnight global sensation in the wake of her performance on the ITV show.
But the Geordie duo said that singers such as Boyle should not be barred from competing in TV talent shows.
And the pair said that the show is not to blame for her well-documented breakdown.
Speaking at the Edinburgh International Television Festival, Ant, 33, said: “She performed three times – that’s all the show asked of her to do.
“The show didn’t camp paparazzi outside her house, the show didn’t put it in the newspapers.
“It’s difficult to turn around and say it’s the show’s fault.“Every care was taken with Susan Boyle – the show took very good care of her.
“She was a single woman from a small town in Scotland – and she’s going on the show to fulfil her dream.
“To tell her she can’t perform on the show because we don’t think think she can handle it – who are we to tell her that?”
TV talent shows have been under fire in recent months, with critics claiming that contestants are exploited in the name of entertainment.
In the same series of Britain’s Got Talent, ten year-old Hollie Steel was reduced to tears on live television after she forgot the words to her song.
See more of our pictures at our Flickr site and videos at our dedicated channel, Deadline TV.
