And the winner is...

Oh those British-popular-vote people... You never know what they will do!

Friday, about Britain's Got Talent, I said, "I think we only learn who are the top 3, and I hereby say the top three will be Spelbound, Janey* and Paul, though those wouldn't be my favourites. I would like to see Christopher, Liam and Tobias, I think. Hard to call..."

Wow, it ended up Spelbound, Twist and Pulse and Kieran! (Others in the final were Tina and Chandi the dog and Connected.)

Here we insert a picture of Elaine up a tree, just for a break. Today it is raining and we are supposed to be having a street party.

Kieran, great back story, survivor, trier, blah blah -- but really! Not better than Tobias, not better than Liam! Christopher, did you hear him??

Spelbound, professionals, world-class competitors... and now winners of a talent show! Though both Amanda and Simon mentioned the 2012 Olympics opening show, and we all know they would be perfect for that!

Oh well. We all know that last year's second-place finisher has a huge album and is I hope living her dream...

*I give you Janey in the semi-final, because in the final she got off to a slow start and was catching up to the music all the way through. Way off and everyone knew it, poor thing!

And I've just got to add this: They say Spelbound have already been approached about the Olympics!

Britain's got a crazy lot of talent

Today saw the end of the Britain's Got Talent semi-finals. Tomorrow, Saturday, we'll have the 10 finalists in a cut-throat final -- not really, since I believe that all 10 get to take part in the live tour and get their share of fame and fortune, though only the winner gets to the Royal Variety Show. Last year Susan Boyle had everyone's attention, and I must say that there is no Susan Boyle this year.

Here's my totally amateur assessment of the situation:

From the first semi-final, there's Spelbound (who apparently have only one L), a bunch of world-class gymnasts; and Tobias Mead, a pretty cool dancing guy.

Then there's Tina and Chandi, a woman and her dancing dog; and Connected, a bunch of boys the age of my son, who want to be a boy band and never mention New Kids on the Block, who are the last boy band I ever paid attention to.

The third night gave us Paul Burling, an impressionist and comedian; and Christopher Stone, the self-proclaimed balding accountant who sings.

Last night Janey Cutler blew people away -- she's 81 and sings. Twist and Pulse are more dancing boys, very good.

And on the last night, the boy drummer I mentioned last year (he didn't make it to the semi-finals last year) won the popular vote, and Liam McNally, the 14-year-old who sings like an angel, also made it through.

So, singers: Liam, Janey, Christopher, Connected

Dancers: Twist and Pulse, Tobias Mead

Then a drummer, a comedian, a dog and some gymnasts!

I love Liam because he's young and good, Janey because she's old and good, Christopher because he's sweet and good. Don't care at all what happens to Connected. I think I prefer Tobias over the two boys, but I don't really think either should get first. Kieran, good but not great; Paul the comedian was okay when he did Bugs Bunny and Scooby Doo, but I don't get the jokes about British TV personalities; Chandi is good for a dog, but really, is a dog the most talented creature in Britain? And Spelbound are entertaining to watch, but I prefer the amateur-ness of the others.

Stephen's got a glass of wine waiting for me on the porch, so let's just make some predictions and get on with it.... I think we only learn who are the top 3, and I hereby say the top three will be Spelbound, Janey and Paul, though those wouldn't be my favourites. I would like to see Christopher, Liam and Tobias, I think. Hard to call...

But now I'm going to knit and imbibe, while you can search YouTube for all the auditions and semi-final shows!

Edited to correct Spelbound, and add their link.

The week thus far

We've had 3 semi-finals in Britain's got Talent. I have proved that I shouldn't bet on this sort of thing, since I have picked my three favourites to win each night, and been a tad off! Lots of dross, as there was last year, but lots of good stuff, too, and my favourites, Neil Fullard and Chloe Hickenbottom, missed out on the finals! The dog act, of course, did make it!

Anne's students, aka The Arrangement, did well last night, but their road ended there, and now they have more time to study for their exams. As it should be, I think! Good try, good fun, but not better than Neil!

And now, the Chia Pet, which has been put outside to enjoy a time in the sun, sprouting its little broccoli bits,




and the sock, with matching flower.

Plans for the future

At the beginning of the year, or maybe in the middle of the flurry of activity at the Knitting Olympics, I had the notion to knit a biggish thing per month. Now that my 2 big long-time unfinished projects are out of the way, or almost (!), I'm thinking of what to do next, and can't quite commit to a large project.

So. I have joined a group on Ravelry to make swatches of cable patterns. I think I will try for one square a week, and heaven knows I have enough inspiration around the house. Plain old stitch dictionaries, Alice Starmore's Aran Knitting, decades of VK back issues... That should keep me busy, actually.

I also have the unfinished socks, and the multitude of blankets in progress! I won't start anything big for a while, I think. My mom's birthday is in July and she will need a pair of socks, but I am not making teacher dishrags or anything like that! I shall try to be carefree yet productive. Does that sound possible?

And now for something completely different! It is Britain's Got Talent time again! So far this year there are three women singers, ranging in age from 10 to 80, and they are all excellent; a man who can sing but apparently doesn't have great stage presence; some world-class gymnasts; and a dog.



Stay tuned -- there are still several weeks of auditions to go, so maybe Chandi will be eclipsed, but right now, I'd say she was the front-runner in my books.