Nick Edwards’ appearance on BGT 2022 was one of those heart-warming BGT moments when it was suspected that the audience had been deceived. In Edward’s case, the evidence suggests that Edwards was genuinely surprised to be called up on stage, but this does not mean that there were no behind the scenes machinations by BGT staff. Let’s start with his BGT audition. Edwards was sitting in the audience when, lo and behold, his two cute-as-buttons young daughters appeared on stage with his mom.
The trio explain that they are surprising Edwards because they want him to come and sing “because he sings a lovely song for the girls.” The reluctant, overwhelmed Edwards is persuaded to go up on stage. He is given time to compose himself (about 45 minutes apparently), then reappears with his own acoustic guitar which his family had secretly brought along. He proceeds to sing Daddy’s Little Girl by Ernie Halter, a song that he says he “sings quite a lot round the house”.
Despite still being emotional, Nick Edwards gives a great, four-yeses performance. Ofentse Mwase Films comments on YouTube: “If you are a father this will def make your tear up! Brilliant performance from a great dad. Whenever I feel like crying, I just watch this video!” BoomsTheGoblin writes, “He finishes the song and just looks right at his kids and his family, like they’re the only thing he sees. Hit me hard man, hit me real hard. I’m speechless”. So what’s the problem? Where’s the setup?
On Twitter, many viewers suggested that the performance was fake as Edwards already had a microphone clipped on while he was in the audience. BGT immediately gave an explanation: “When Nick entered the Palladium auditorium during BGT auditions, he was approached to be part of our ‘gogglebox’ audience and told he would be mic’d up so we could capture his reactions throughout the day as he sat in the audience. He was totally unsuspecting.” Before continuing, let’s have a look at Edwards post-BGT:
That is Into You, the first single from Edwards debut EP 1960 (2023). A self-taught guitarist, after school Nick Edwards gigged around the UK until he was 23. In his mid-20s, around the time he discovered an abiding passion for Country music, Edwards quit music to work in the property sector, where he met his wife Catherine. The couple have four children.
As he climbed the professional ladder, Nick Edwards put his music-career aspirations behind him. Meanwhile Edwards became a boxing official as an outlet for his passions. He was involved in many professional events, including the fight between Anthony Joshua Vs Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium in 2017. Edwards’ surprise appearance on BGT 2022, where he made it to the semi-finals, reignited his interest in making music. Music News reports that Edwards’ BGT performance has been viewed well over 300M times and trended worldwide on the YouTube Top Ten within 48 hours of being aired.
Besides his EP, Nick Edwards is scheduled to star in an independent documentary titled Road to the Opry. The documentary, which is being prepared for the 100th anniversary of Nashville’s The Grand Ole Opry in November 2025, intends to show the Opry’s “history, how important it is in American music culture, and what it feels like to step out on the iconic Opry stage”
Nick Edwards is on the move and The Music Man wishes him well.
There is a question that I have left lingering. I spoke of behind the scenes machinations by BGT staff. Soon after his audition aired, Edwards appeared on the TV show This Morning. He said: “They gave me my guitar my family brought down on the day, they [producers] said this is the song we want you to sing because we’d seen it on your Instagram”. This gives me pause. A number of “Got Talent” contestants have spoken of being approached by Got Talent agents due to their social media posts. One example that comes to mind is Gabriel Brown, the popular impressionist singer from AGT 2022. It is possible, and even likely, that BGT agents saw Edwards’ Instagram post and strategised how to get the most emotional impact from getting Edwards on BGT. This is no reflection on Nick Edwards, but it does reinforce what many people already know: on reality TV, reality is often manipulated by producers and other interests.
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