The Britain's Got Talent judges were left stunned by a sensational first audition which they said was one of the best they had ever seen. 23-year-old Tom Ball wowed the judging panel and viewers at home with his rendition of Sam Smith's 'Writing on the Wall', earning a standing ovation and drawing comparisons to former finalist Susan Boyle.
Tom, a secondary school teacher from West Sussex, was all smiles as he entered the stage and later admitted to the judges that he was "really excited" to perform for them. He was accompanied to the audition by his dad and fiancée, who were there to cheer him on.
Dressed in a smart suit and tie and with a bouffant hairstyle, some of those in the audience assumed he had a different talent to singing. "He's a Boris Johnson impersonator," guessed one member of the audience as Tom took to the stage.
Asked what he did for a living, Tom told the judges that he "absolutely loves" being a teacher. "The kids don't know I'm here. I wanted it to be a surprise. If it goes badly, it goes badly," he admitted. "Most don't know [that I have this talent]. I've only sung to one of my classes."
He told the panel that he is often compared to musical theatre star Michael Ball, which drew a grimace from Simon. However, any fears that the head judge might have had were immediately put to bed as the 23-year-old belted out the theme to James Bond film Sceptre, which had the judges and the 4,000 strong audience inside the London Palladium on their feet.
Following his sensational performance, all four judges were full of praise for the young singer. "Who knew what a powerhouse you were?!," said a stunned Amanda Holden. "That was an exceptional audition. One of the best singers we've had in the last sixteen years." Alesha Dixon added: "I really felt moved by that vocal and that performance. It was really, really special. You're a lovely character, your personality, sweetness, humility. All of that together, it made for the perfect audition."
"There's lots and lots of good singers out there," said Simon. "I always believe your personality plays a huge part in these auditions and there's something very likeable about you. I don't think there's a single person in this room who wanted you to fail. I'm so happy that you came, so happy". Meanwhile, David Walliams - who earlier in the show had got topless for a dancing granny - added: "You never forget a good teacher. How lucky your kids are to have you teaching them, because you seem like such a lovely person and you've got this exceptional talent."
With four resounding yeses, Tom was through to the next round - and the judges were not the only ones blown away by his performance. Stunned fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts, with many agreeing with Amanda and saying he was one of the best acts the show has ever had and some even drawing comparisons with Susan Boyle.
"He smashed it," said one. "It's a Susan Boyle moment all over again." Another added: "Wow, that was amazing. What a lovely talented guy." A third viewer wrote: "WOW! What a voice any of his students watching will be going berserk! This is why these shows MUST exist! To find ordinary people with ordinary jobs with extraordinary talents like his! A Sam Smith song no less and a Bond theme song - what a voice."
Some viewers were questioning why Tom didn't get a golden buzzer, which would put him straight through to the live semi-finals. On Saturday night, American singer Loren Allred got that very honour after performing Never Enough from The Greatest Showman, having provided the vocals for the song in the film itself. You can read more about that here.
"HOW DID HE NOT GET A GOLDEN BUZZER?" asked one. "Seriously he has the best voice I've heard on this show since the likes of Susan Boyle and Paul Potts. He's special!! Wow!!" Another added: "Well done that man, now HE should have been tonight’s golden buzzer, fantastic performance." A third wrote: "Should have got the golden buzzer to be fair, very disappointed he didn’t," with another viewer adding: "He really deserved that golden buzzer."
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