Susan Boyle and the ratings game. A cynical view.

I hear that there have been 20 million hits on the YouTube video of Susan Boyle’s performance on the T.V. show “Britain’s Got Talent”.

It’s a nice enough video.

48 year old Miss Boyle is a homely woman from Scotland. She sang a more than decent rendering of a song from “Les Mis”. It is fun to see and to hear.

Now “the world” is getting dewy eyed as folks view the video.

But let’s be honest. Miss Boyle is NOT the next Elaine Page. She is simply an apparently dear and sweet woman who can “belt them out”.

So why all the attention?

Maybe because this represents the very ancient ugly duckling/lovely swan myth.

Maybe because many of us think: “this could be me”.

Maybe because she seems to be a “very decent woman”, in our most indecent world. We believe that we’d rather have a cup of tea with her, than with Gordon Brown or Nicholas Sarkosy.

My cynical side comes into play.

I believe that the “judges” on “Britain’s Got Talent” had been briefed in advance. “Someone” let them know that this is just the sort of act which will gain the show greater ratings as it progresses.


I think that the good Miss Boyle was an innocent player in the miserable ratings game. I believe that “Britain’s Got Talent” is exploiting her for financial reasons.

That being said, I hope that she will not advance to the “finals”.


I also hope that she will get to sing to the Queen if that is her wish.