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Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
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Never been kissed but Susan is a worldwide hit
Source: Agencies |
April 18, 2009, Saturday
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Print Edition
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SUSAN Boyle lives alone in a row house with her cat Pebbles, a drab existence in one of Scotland's poorest regions. She cared for her widowed mother for years, never married and sang in church and at karaoke nights at the pub.
Neighbors knew she could sing, and now - thanks to YouTube, Twitter and blog postings - just about everyone else does, too.
Since wowing the judges on the TV show "Britain's Got Talent," the frumpy 47-year-old, who says she has never been kissed, has gained celebrity fans and millions of admirers.
"I did this for my late mother," the unemployed Boyle said from her home in Blackburn, a community of 4,750 people 30 kilometers west of Edinburgh, on Thursday. "I wanted to show her I could do something with my life."
She did that and showed a thing or two to the show's smug judges, who include Simon Cowell of "American Idol" fame.
When she mounted the stage for Saturday's broadcast, her frizzy gray-tinged hair curling wildly and a gold lace dress clinging unflatteringly to her chubby frame, Boyle looked the antithesis of the American idols Cowell normally anoints.
She was greeted with giggles from the audience and eye rolls from the notoriously acerbic Cowell. The audience chuckled in embarrassment as she wiggled her hips awkwardly.
Then she opened her mouth.
Launching into "I Dreamed a Dream," from the musical "Les Miserables," her soaring voice drew startled looks and then delighted smiles from Cowell and the other judges. The audience leapt to its feet to applaud.
More than 11 million people watched Saturday's show, but Boyle's instant success is due as much to new media as to the power of television, with a clip of her performance posted on YouTube by the show's producers drawing nearly 13 million views.
In the past few days, Boyle has appeared on TV around the world. Her fans include actors Demi Moore and husband Ashton Kutcher who flagged the performance on Twitter, as well as Oprah Winfrey, who has invited Boyle onto her show. Interview requests have poured in.
Neighbors knew she could sing, and now - thanks to YouTube, Twitter and blog postings - just about everyone else does, too.
Since wowing the judges on the TV show "Britain's Got Talent," the frumpy 47-year-old, who says she has never been kissed, has gained celebrity fans and millions of admirers.
"I did this for my late mother," the unemployed Boyle said from her home in Blackburn, a community of 4,750 people 30 kilometers west of Edinburgh, on Thursday. "I wanted to show her I could do something with my life."
She did that and showed a thing or two to the show's smug judges, who include Simon Cowell of "American Idol" fame.
When she mounted the stage for Saturday's broadcast, her frizzy gray-tinged hair curling wildly and a gold lace dress clinging unflatteringly to her chubby frame, Boyle looked the antithesis of the American idols Cowell normally anoints.
She was greeted with giggles from the audience and eye rolls from the notoriously acerbic Cowell. The audience chuckled in embarrassment as she wiggled her hips awkwardly.
Then she opened her mouth.
Launching into "I Dreamed a Dream," from the musical "Les Miserables," her soaring voice drew startled looks and then delighted smiles from Cowell and the other judges. The audience leapt to its feet to applaud.
More than 11 million people watched Saturday's show, but Boyle's instant success is due as much to new media as to the power of television, with a clip of her performance posted on YouTube by the show's producers drawing nearly 13 million views.
In the past few days, Boyle has appeared on TV around the world. Her fans include actors Demi Moore and husband Ashton Kutcher who flagged the performance on Twitter, as well as Oprah Winfrey, who has invited Boyle onto her show. Interview requests have poured in.
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