Dressed comfortably in a gold dress with her hair looking inappropriately groomed, a 47-year-old Scottish woman snagged a microphone and undesirably insinuated her sexual prowess.
She laughed confidently as judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan asked quasi-mockingly why she wanted to be famous and why she even considered competing in the event."Because nobody has ever given me a chance," said the Scot through her thick accent. Audience members opted out of concealing their low standards about Susan Doyle's yet-to-be-heard performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables.
However, as soon as she belted out the first line of the song, Simon Cowell's eyes became as large as the smiles across the faces of everyone who watched the video on YouTube for the first time.
Within the first stanza's completion, the entire Clyde Auditorium in Glasgow, Scotland was cheering. I was cheering, too, sitting on Torg Bridge and being shushed by confused and irritated studiers.
The masters of ceremonies for the competition, Ant and Dec, insist that you "never saw it coming, did you?"
After her stunning performance, the auditorium had been transformed into a collection of amazed and caught-off-guard spectators.
"From the moment you came onstage, I knew that you were going to be great," Cowell joked.
And that's a shame.
Since Susan Boyle's performance at the Clyde Auditorium was aired three weeks ago, she has been the focus of the morning talk show cycle, promoting the message of the dangers of presumptuousness.
Jeanne McManus, an occasional contributor to The Washington Post, did not hide her low expectations for the 47-year-old contestant. "The eye-rolling public and the three jaded judges were waiting for her to squawk like a duck," McManus wrote.
And so was I.
So were my friends. We all were.
It was apparent the Boyle would stride - albeit neither elegantly nor gracefully - to win "Britain's Got Talent" until Aug 25, when 10-year-old Hollie Steel jumped on-stage with her typical youthful effervescence and classic pink tutu.
Piers Morgan greeted her and bid her good luck, which she apparently didn't need. After hopping on stage for a couple measures, Steel reared back and threw the audience the second largest surprise of the contest.
The little girl could flat out sing.
Once again, the audience was thrown into a frenzy and the judges were amazed. Before picking up her obligatory unanimous "yes" vote, the judges brought up their shock.
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Media being a fan of the underdog? Nothing new there. I wonder why that is though. Probably because they are so amazed that their initial impressions of something are completely wrong.
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The pathetic behavior of people who relate looks and talent never ceases to amaze me. It spans the entire spectrum of human endeavor, from sappy talent shows like Cowell's to even NASCAR, where a guy like Richard Petty, or Cale Yarborough wouldn't have a shot at a big time ride these days because the sponsors want cookie cutter pretty boys.
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