Britain's Got Talent judges lose voting powers in format change
The two finalists each night will now be chosen entirely by the public
Simon Cowell and his fellow Britain's Got Talent judges are to lose their power to choose the second acts to go through to the final of the ITV talent show, in a format change that will see viewers deciding both of the first two places in each semi-final.
In the past, the performer with the highest number of votes from the public in each of the semi-finals automatically went through, with the judges then choosing between the second and third placed acts to join them. But in a change to the rules, the two most popular acts will now automatically go through, with the judges having no say in the matter.
Simon, Alesha Dixon, David Walliams and Amanda Holden will, however, retain their right to choose one wildcard act to send through to the final.
The news was announced by Stephen Mulhern in spin-off show Britain's Got More Talent on Saturday night.
The live semi-finals of Britain's Got Talent start on Monday 29th May and are stripped nightly across the week on ITV at 7:30pm until Friday, with results shows at 9:30pm. The final is on Sunday 4th June at 7:30pm.
