A young Basingstoke singer proved her star material by grabbing the
national spotlight and wooing the judges of Britain’s Got Talent on
Saturday.
Twelve-year-old former Festival Factor winner Lauren Thalia received a standing ovation and mesmerised the four star judges during the auditions stage of the ITV show.
Armed with a guitar, the Testbourne Community College pupil from Hatch Warren gave a unique rendition of Soulja Boy’s Turn My Swag On.
After the two-minute song judge David Walliams likened her to a young Alanis Morisette, and notoriously hard to please Simon Cowell was left beaming.
Speaking to the Basingstoke Observer, Lauren said performing on the show was “the best ever experience”.
“I wasn’t really very nervous, I try to turn it into excitement,” she said. “When you get up there and see the judges right in front of you it really is amazing. It’s just so surreal but a great experience that I will never forget."
Lauren said that she wanted to shock the millions of TV viewers with her choice of song.
“I really wanted to surprise people,” she said. “I didn’t think they would expect anything like that to come from me and so with my song choice I wanted people to be shocked but hopefully they were shocked in a good way.”
The youngster earned her stripes by winning the under-18s category of 2010’s Festival Factor with her performance of Florence and the Machine’s Dog Days.
And last year she wowed thousands of fans on the main stage of July’s Basingstoke Live in War Memorial Park.
After wrapping up her song, judge Alesha Dixon described the youngster as “cute as a button”.
And Carmen Electra said: “Britain really does have talent girl, you rock.”
Lauren said she was delighted at the 3,600-strong audience, and judges' reaction, as well as support from fans back home.
“That was absolutely the best feeling in the world,” she said. “It makes you feel that you really have done so well. I really did not expect to get a standing ovation - it was brilliant.
“My friends have been so supportive, they were really amazing. They were over the moon for me and so proud. It was just a great feeling to know that they were backing me.”
Lauren will find out on May 5 if she is one of the 45 acts to be chosen from the shortlist for the live rounds.
Twelve-year-old former Festival Factor winner Lauren Thalia received a standing ovation and mesmerised the four star judges during the auditions stage of the ITV show.
Armed with a guitar, the Testbourne Community College pupil from Hatch Warren gave a unique rendition of Soulja Boy’s Turn My Swag On.
After the two-minute song judge David Walliams likened her to a young Alanis Morisette, and notoriously hard to please Simon Cowell was left beaming.
Speaking to the Basingstoke Observer, Lauren said performing on the show was “the best ever experience”.
“I wasn’t really very nervous, I try to turn it into excitement,” she said. “When you get up there and see the judges right in front of you it really is amazing. It’s just so surreal but a great experience that I will never forget."
Lauren said that she wanted to shock the millions of TV viewers with her choice of song.
“I really wanted to surprise people,” she said. “I didn’t think they would expect anything like that to come from me and so with my song choice I wanted people to be shocked but hopefully they were shocked in a good way.”
The youngster earned her stripes by winning the under-18s category of 2010’s Festival Factor with her performance of Florence and the Machine’s Dog Days.
And last year she wowed thousands of fans on the main stage of July’s Basingstoke Live in War Memorial Park.
After wrapping up her song, judge Alesha Dixon described the youngster as “cute as a button”.
And Carmen Electra said: “Britain really does have talent girl, you rock.”
Lauren said she was delighted at the 3,600-strong audience, and judges' reaction, as well as support from fans back home.
“That was absolutely the best feeling in the world,” she said. “It makes you feel that you really have done so well. I really did not expect to get a standing ovation - it was brilliant.
“My friends have been so supportive, they were really amazing. They were over the moon for me and so proud. It was just a great feeling to know that they were backing me.”
Lauren will find out on May 5 if she is one of the 45 acts to be chosen from the shortlist for the live rounds.