The Best New Musical Talent Of 2007

He looked like an unlikely star when he took to the stage in front of Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan. But as Paul Potts began Nessun Dorma for the judges of the Britain's Got Talent show the power of his astonishing performance left few in doubt that this was no ordinary singer. He received a standing ovation from the 2000 people in the audience and left Amanda Holden with tears of joy rolling down her face. Even Simon Coswell and Piers Morgan were pleasantly surprised. He had established himself as the best new music talent of 2007.

He went on to win the talent show and received the chance to perform in front of the Queen at the Royal Variety Performance 2007. Paul also received a record deal from Simon Coswell. His first C.D. is called "One Chance"

Paul was born in 1971 in Bristol from Port Talbot in south Whales. He had appeared in four amateur opera productions and in a concert for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and had plans for a summer tour with the Orchestra. 

Potts is said to have first sung Opera in 1999 in a karaoke competition,[when he was 28 years old] dressed as Pavarotti, although he had said during the show that his voice had always been a source of solace in the past when bullied, so he would have sung from a younger age. That same year he appeared in the Michael Barrymore talent show "My Kind of Music". Although he did not win the competition, he won £8,000, which helped to pay for singing lessons in Italy. 

For the Bath UK based amateur company Bath Opera, he has performed on four occasions in the roles of Don Basilio {Marriage of Figaro), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) and the title role in Verdi's Don Carlos, and Turandot as Prince of Persia and Herald. He also sang for the Royal Philharmonic in front of an audience of 15,000 and toured Northern Italy as a soloist.

However, after spending £20,000 on his career hopes, including a masterclass in which he sang for Luciano Pavarotti, doctors discovered a benign tumor during treatment for appendicitis in 2003. Then, shortly after his recovery, he broke his collar bone in a bike accident

Instead of thinking about singing, he was lying on the sofa in agony. Now when he goes on stage his wife of 4 years Julie doesn't want people to say "break a leg" because Paul probably would. For a time he worked as a shelf-stacker in Tesco and ended up as the manager at Bridgend's Carphone Warehouse, 

After winning Britain's Got Talent, Paul has been busy circling the globe on promotion tours. It is amazing how fast his life has changed since the show. He is one of those rare individuals that has found out what can only be described as an "Over Night Success" His videos on the Internet have already received over 10 million views. He is a person who has been blessed with a great talent and deserves as much recognition as he is receiving. I do believe that there is a little Paul Potts in every one of us.