Britain’s Got Talent bosses have spoken out in support of the show’s latest Golden Buzzer act, after viewers discovered he’d previously appeared in various other shows in the same franchise.
During Saturday night’s episode, BGT hosts Ant and Dec gave their Golden Buzzer to Japanese magician Keiichi Iwasaki, after they were impressed with his impressive illusion act.
Keiichi won over all four members of the panel, as well as the presenting duo, who gave him a fast pass to the next stage of the competition.
However, after the episode aired, some viewers on social media took issue with the fact that BGT marks Keiichi’s fifth time appearing on a Got Talent series.
Previously, he auditioned for Bulgaria, Spain and Germany’s equivalent talent shows, and even made it to the semi-finals of Italia’s Got Talent in 2016 with one of the tricks showcased in his BGT audition.
Responding to this criticism, a spokesperson for BGT defended Keiichi, insisting he’s deserving of his spot on the show.
“As with many other entertainers who are hoping for success in the industry, Keiichi, a street performer, had previously auditioned on television shows in the past,” they told HuffPost UK.
“There are no rules that state this should prevent him from applying. All acts audition on the same basis and normal programme rules apply.”
Responding to some headlines accusing Keiichi’s involvement of being evidence of a “fix”, they added: “These claims unnecessarily encourage negative trolling against our contestants and ‘fix’ claims are completely untrue.
“We have always been very open about who can apply for BGT. We look forward to our viewers tuning in to show their support to Keiichi.”
BGT bosses were previously forced to defend another of this year’s Golden Buzzer acts, Loren Allred, whose voice was featured in the hit film The Greatest Showman.
Britain's Got Talent continues on Saturday night on ITV.