Susan Boyle songbird of chav Britain
Television channels which once had a proud mission to educate and edify are today concerned with nothing but the crassest entertaintment. The staple fare of modern television is the reality show, in which people with no talent are judged by a panel of equally dubious talent, and applauded by an audience with no talent at all.
Plain Jane Scottish singer Susan Boyle, born June 15, 1961, achieved overnight global recognition using the "talent" show Britain's Got Talent as her platform. She performed a competent though uninspiring version of "I dreamed a dream" from "Les Miserables".
Boyle broke the mold of Pretty Face, Pretty Voice. In her case it was Ugly Face, OK Voice, which seemed to surprise and please millions of people all over the people, and also supply a tear-jerking narrative to back her rise to fame.
The instant fame gave Boyle a sense of invincibility. She was sure she would win Britain's Got Talent but came second to dance group Diversity.
Boyle went into a tail spin and ended up the private Priory asylum, where she was treated for burnout and other psychological ailments.
Boyle is a self-confessed virgin. Some sources say she is secretly dating reality show host Piers Morgan, who is one of her main supporters, and Notts County director of football Sven Goran Eriksson, who is the former manager of the England international soccer team.
In September 2009, Boyle appeared on America's Got Talent as a guest performer singing a cover version of the Rolling Stones song "Wild Horses". It is one of the tracks on her debut album, "I Dreamed a Dream", released on 23 November 2009.
Boyle is particularly popular in the United States where she is a seen as a living embodiment of the American dream, i.e. believe in yourself, work hard, and you can be whatever you want.
Tasteless tarts and crushing bores
Aubrey de Gray