Susan Boyle, 47, wowed judges and audience alike
when she performed on television contest "Britain's Got Talent."
By Tuesday, a video clip of Boyle's performance on Internet site YouTube has
been watched more than 2.7 million times.
The unemployed Scot who said she'd "never been kissed" drew titters when she
told the judges her ambition was to be a professional singer. But her soaring
rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" from the musical "Les Miserables" astonished
the show's hard-to-please judges.
They were captivated by the singer from Blackburn in western Scotland. Usually
acerbic judge Simon Cowell dubbed her singing "extraordinary." Fellow judge
Piers Morgan said her "stunning" performance was "the biggest surprise I've had
in three years of this show." The show, the first in a new series of "Britain's
Got Talent," was watched by 11.4 million of Britain's 60 million people on
Saturday night.
British bookmakers made Boyle the early favorite to win the series. She is the
latest in a proud tradition of underdogs who win the heart of the British
public.
The program, sister show of "America's Got Talent," made a star of its first
winner, an unassuming mobile phone salesman named Paul Potts. He wowed audiences
with his rendition of the aria "Nessun Dorma" and has become a global recording
star since winning the series -- and signing to Cowell's record label -- in 2007
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