Britain's Got Talent Judges

From LoveToKnow Reality-TV

The Britain's Got Talent judges are much like their American counterparts on America's Got Talent. They're outspoken professionals who aren't afraid to speak their minds, cut contestants they don't like, and go up against each other when they disagree. Opinionated judges are at the heart of most reality TV shows that feature talent competitions, and these judges fit the bill perfectly.

About Britain's Got Talent

Britain's Got Talent has a format similar to the Idol franchise in that it is a talent-based competition. The difference in the Got Talent series of reality shows is that there's no niche for contestants to fit into. Dancers compete against singers, puppeteers compete against comedians, and so on.

The show is broken down into two distinct phases: the audition phase and the competition phase. During the auditions, viewers get to see both the good and the bad potential contestants, and the judges are the ones who decide who gets to move on. In the competition phase, viewer votes combine with the judges' decisions to determine who moves on. The winner is then determined by viewer voting.

The Britain's Got Talent Judges

Britain's Got Talent has three main judges: Simon Cowell, Piers Morgan (who also appears on America's Got Talent as a judge), and Amanda Holden. Two other judges, Cheryl Cole and Kelly Brook, were slated to appear on the show, but were unceremoniously cut before the program went to air.

Simon Cowell

Simon Cowell was born in Brighton, East Sussex, England, on October 7, 1959. He is currently single and divides his time between Britain and the United States.

Cowell is best known in the U.S. as the hot-headed, critical judge on American Idol. In fact, Cowell is the producer and creative mind behind a number of reality TV shows all over the world, including:

The X Factor
America's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent
American Inventor
Celebrity Duets
Grease is the Word

In addition to his production company, Syco, Cowell also runs a recording company called S Records. He has signed many of the contestants and winners from Pop Idol (the original British version of American Idol) and The X Factor.

Simon Cowell has a finely tuned ear for what will be successful on the pop charts. In 2004, he put together a group called Il Divo, which was made up of three opera singers and one pop singer. The band was quite successful, and spawned a similar group made up of children, called Angelis.

Piers Morgan

Piers Morgan was born in Newick, East Sussex, England on March 30, 1965. He is currently divorced and has three children.

Morgan studied journalism and eventually became the editor of two of Britain's biggest-selling tabloid newspapers. He has since moved on to television, but continues as editor of the children's newspaper First News.

Currently, Morgan is a judge on both Britain's Got Talent and America's Got Talent. In the American version he is cast as the "nasty" judge, similar to Simon Cowell's persona on American Idol. He has also participated in both the British and American versions of The Celebrity Apprentice and emerged as the winner in the first installment of the U.S. show.

Over the pond, Piers Morgan has several regular television series, including a talk show, a travel program, and Piers Morgan's Life Stories, which delves into the lives of celebrities.

Amanda Holden

Amanda Holden was born in Bishop's Waltham, Hampshire, England on February 16, 1971. She is currently married to record producer Chris Hughes.

Holden is an actress who is well known in England for her role in the drama Wild at Heart. She has also appeared in British sitcoms, television movies, and musicals. She has also been seen on the dating show Blind Date as a contestant and had a small part in the popular soap opera East Enders.

Amanda Holden is the newest addition to the lineup of co-hosts on the CBS morning program The Early Show.