Newly-crowned BGT winners The Hawkstone Farmers Choir were joined for celebrations by judge Amanda Holden, their founder Jeremy Clarkson – and there were beer, tears and karaoke
The Hawkstone Farmers Choir celebrated their historic Britain’s Got Talent win on Saturday with a booze-up at a Hammersmith pub, alongside their founder Jeremy Clarkson – who footed the bill, BGT judge Amanda Holden and runners-up, Celestial.
Choir members Flo Dawes and her mum Ali from Gloucestershire, who run a dressage yard together, let the Mirror in on how they celebrated becoming the first choir to ever win the ITV talent show.
Flo told us: “It was amazing, we were all together, with Celestial, too. They’re so lovely. Jeremy was there, Amanda – we got our own speaker and we were singing our own songs and doing karaoke as well, we just had the most amazing time.”
“Then we ended up back at the hotel, just sitting on the floor, trying to figure out what the hell had just happened, eating pizza, a bit bewildered, a little drunk, and very happy,”
Ali says Amanda – who gave the choir her golden buzzer, was quite choked up at the celebrations – as was Jeremy. “She’s always loved us, and just been really supportive. And Jeremy. They were both quite teary. Us, there were no tears left in us I don’t think! Everybody was just crying and laughing. It was joyous.”
As for the prospect of performing for the King, Flo says it hasn’t quite sunk in. “My gosh, it’s going to be amazing because he’s such an advocate for farming and for rural people.
“I think it’s just amazing that we get to have that opportunity to perform in front of someone that shares that same passion as us.”
Fellow choir member, farmer Andy Owens – who joked he barely had any voice left after ‘burning the candle at both ends’ the last few days, said of the moment they heard they’d won, “It was mindblowing. We never expected to win. Being able to share our message was all we wanted – but this… this is amazing.
“Three lives are lost a week in our industry, so there was a lot of responsibility, the stakes felt very high. I was just in floods of tears.”
Of the celebrations, he said, “Jeremy very kindly footed the bill for all the drinks. As you can imagine, a whole load of farmers and their families and free beer go very well together! So yes a lot was drunk and a lot of us didn’t go to bed till 4, 5am on Sunday. The sun was definitely coming up when I called it a day!”
He added: “Initially my wife didn’t believe I was going on BGT – she jokingly suggested I was going on a soiree with another woman, as I kept disappearing down to the Cotswolds with this choir to rehearse…!”
After weeks of tense semi-finals and high drama moments, ten acts performed again in front of the judges in the grand final.
But it was the public this time, not judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and KSI who voted for the choir to win the £250,000 prize decided by public vote – alongside that coveted spot to perform at the Royal Variety Performance, in front of the King.
Following in the footsteps of previous winners, including Paul Potts, Diversity and Ashleigh and Pudsey, they defeated Anastasiia and Salsa, who came third and Celestial, who finished as runners-up.
Performing the original song This Is Home, they dedicated their win to all the farmers out there, especially those facing struggles.
And their “biggest cheerleader” Clarkson, who was in the audience, could be seen literally erupting into cheers at their win. Amanda Holden took to social media to express her joy that her golden buzzer act had won for a second year running, admitting she ‘hadn’t stopped crying’.
Viewers at home were delighted too, one saying, “A choir finally won!” Another added: “The most deserving of winners. They are what this country is all about. Support our British farmers!”
Choir member Sally Spence teased on Sunday that there had been some serious partying, writing on social media, “THANK YOU!!! Thank you to everyone who supported us, voted for us & watched us on te night. WE WON @bgt!!
“I will post more photos, words & reply to all the messages, please bear with me – @thehawkstonefarmerschoir had a little celebrating to do last night!”
Fellow choir member Ben Brooke became emotional on Instagram as he shared behind-the-scenes glimpses of their celebrations.
He wrote, “Last night was one of the most incredible nights of my life. A year ago, most of us were complete strangers brought together for what was meant to be a beer advert. None of us could ever have imagined where that one decision would lead.
“What followed was friendships, laughter, memories that will last a lifetime and a journey that took a group of ordinary farmers all the way to winning Britain’s Got Talent.”
The choir was formed to support members with their mental health, and shine a light on the day-to-day struggles that farmers face, having initially formed as part of an advertising campaign for Clarkson’s Cotswolds-based brewing firm.
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