St Helens’ Britain’s Got Talent runner-up Jamie Leahey sent an amusing thank you message to his supporters back home.
The 13-year-old ventriloquist came second place in the final of Britain’s Got Talent on Sunday night (June 5). Jamie, from Rainford, won over the hearts of the British public in the talent show with his hilarious routines with his cheeky chicken puppet, Chuck.
Jamie and Chuck opened the live final on Sunday with a performance filled with jokes and songs. Highlights included a remark at Dec’s expense, when the mischievous chicken revealed he almost didn’t make it to the final as he was staying at Ant and Dec’s house – where he slept on the sofa and Dec slept in the cutlery drawer.
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Jamie continued to perform with incredible stage presence and confidence with Chuck ‘interrupting’ with witty comments every so often. The pair mimicked a ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’ episode, which made for more jokes.
Jamie and Chuck were asked: “Where would you find a legless tortoise?”, to which Chuck responded: “Exactly where you left it!”
Jamie sent a message to the people of St Helens this morning (June 7) in the same light-hearted spirit as his performances. He began his video by saying: “Thanks guys for all your support and getting behind…”
Chuck swiftly interrupted to complete Jamie’s sentence. He chirped: “Us! Getting behind us!” The inventive thank you message showed the chicken trying to claim credit for the pair's success on the show.
Jamie looked amused and told his puppet "Alright!"
The performance received rapturous applause from the audience and a standing ovation from the judges on Sunday night. Amanda Holden said she was reduced to tears and said Jamie was “such a professional, despite being a young lad".
Simon Cowell also heaped praise on the young star, saying his brilliant material showed he should stick with his ventriloquism for a career, while David Walliams called on the other acts to go home after Jamie’s stellar performance and Alesha Dixon said he had outdone his earlier routine in the semi-final.
The St Helens teenager narrowly missed out on the £250,000 prize money and performance at the Royal Variety to winner comedian Axel Blake. Jamie received 14.7% of the public vote, behind Axel’s 19.7%, according to ITV.
Jamie tweeted that was “proud” to be from St Helens after the final and thanked everyone for their support. His Facebook video message this morning was met with praise and congratulations from people in the town.
One user said: “Lovely talented young man. So proud of how he handled the whole thing. I think he was by far the best act. Good luck for the future Jamie.”
Another said: “You were my winner Jamie, you ( & Chuck ) were absolutely fantastic! A real star quality, funny, likeable & very talented.”
