Simon Cowell ends up onstage holding a whiteboard that says “MELON” while a masked stranger occupies his seat at the judges’ desk. By then, a former nuclear engineer has produced a cucumber prediction, Amanda Holden has lost her watch, and Ant and Dec have climbed onto the desk to hit the Golden Buzzer. In this Britain’s Got Talent compilation, the magicians keep finding new ways to make the judges lose their composure.
The performers share a useful skill: they can make an audience laugh while giving it something impossible to explain. Their jokes also change what the judges expect. A man who seems too silly to take seriously can still leave Simon staring at a card he was holding between his own hands.
Jack Rhodes makes a cucumber hard to forget
Jack Rhodes introduces himself as a former nuclear engineer. His parents were unimpressed by his move into magic, he says. His dad called him a “part time wizard,” before Jack corrects himself: “Full time moron.” Asked whether he could win, he offers two possible responses to his act: “Wow. How did he do that?” or “Wow. Why did he do that?”
That dry delivery gives him room to be ridiculous. Jack suggests that he may have appeared before as the invisible magician known as the Phantom, then describes himself as a “gangly ninja.” He asks Simon to write the first word that comes to mind when he looks at him. Simon chooses “cucumber.” Jack chooses “minted” for his own card.
Simon and Bruno Tonioli each sandwich a card between their hands. Jack announces that he will move undetected. When they check, the words have changed places. The judges’ grip on the cards gives the trick its force: they have taken part in the precautions and still cannot account for the result.
Jack then offers an action replay in slow motion. An assistant in black scuba gear slips behind him as he gestures. The supposed explanation becomes another performance, with a conspicuous accomplice doing very little to support Jack’s claim to stealth.
He saves a second puzzle for the word itself. Jack introduces a prediction video that he says he uploaded six months earlier, titled “what Simon will think of.” On the phone recording, a whiteboard displays “cucumber.” The claim about when he posted it belongs to the act; the visible payoff is the exact word Simon supplied.
Even the judging becomes part of Jack’s routine. His assistant crawls into a wooden crate, and the judges struggle to establish whether the performance has finished. Simon praises Jack’s potential but says the ending did not feel big enough. Jack folds down the crate’s sides to reveal an empty interior. “I liked it because the end was big,” comes the revised assessment. He leaves with four yeses.
Matt Edwards turns a toast into a breakthrough
Matt Edwards, a 34-year-old magician from Suffolk, describes his work as “a little bit crazy, a little bit variety.” He starts with a toast and teaches the audience to shout “Cheers.” Then he stretches a drink into a full physical comedy routine.
Matt pulls rubber-faced expressions, remembers the salt and drinks a stream of tequila straight from the bottle while dancing. His frantic manner makes each delay feel like another derailment. By the time a continuous stream of salt pours from his empty bare hand, he has given the audience plenty to watch besides that hand.
David Walliams praises his willingness to push jokes “until they almost break.” Amanda reaches for Tommy Cooper as a comparison. She explains that Matt’s clowning distracts her from what he is doing, which makes the magic harder to follow. Her response describes the particular pleasure of his act: viewers can enjoy the nonsense and still be caught by the trick.
Simon admits that Matt’s voice initially made him expect an annoying performance. Now he calls him “really, really funny” and asks why he has not had his break. “It’s your energy,” he says. “I’ve just got a feeling about you.”
Ant and Dec act on that feeling. They run onto the judges’ desk and press the Golden Buzzer. Gold confetti falls as they embrace Matt in tears. After all the mugging and interruptions, he seems overwhelmed. The hosts later explain that they loved the act and wanted to give him the chance Simon had been talking about.
Håkan Berg keeps the birds coming
Swedish magician Håkan Berg performs with a different kind of absurd confidence. A flash of fire in his hand becomes a flapping mechanical dove. He pulls a full champagne bottle from an open sheet of newspaper, then announces “the classic trick, the champagne in the newspaper.”
He pours the champagne into the paper and declares it gone. Soon he pours champagne back out of the dry newspaper into a flute. The effect has a clear sequence, but Håkan surrounds it with odd exclamations and bird business. A large animatronic bird appears on his shoulder, adding another creature to a performance already crowded with them.
One judge calls him “brilliantly barking mad and funny in all the right places.” The panel again invokes Tommy Cooper, while Håkan names Cooper and John Cleese among his tastes. His mock grandeur makes that connection easy to understand: he presents foolishness with the assurance of someone delivering a masterclass. All four judges vote yes.
Lioz makes Amanda wait for the trick
Lioz begins by insisting on a proper exchange of “Good evening.” Before he has performed any magic, he is directing the judges’ responses. When Amanda joins him, he asks her name and tells her to tell the truth. A clipboard cover drops to reveal a mirror reflecting her face.
He gives Amanda a choice of two boxes. Standing back-to-back, they are to select coloured plastic bags and turn towards the audience after she counts to ten. He repeatedly stops her and demands a slower count. While Amanda concentrates with her back turned, Lioz peels and eats a banana.
The audience gets to see what his volunteer cannot. Her effort and his casual snack make the long wait funny, and his stern instructions keep it going. Then he announces that he has taken something from her and dangles her wristwatch. He also produces wallets; from David’s wallet, he pulls David’s missing watch.
David calls him “an absolute comedy genius.” Lioz objects: “It’s not comedy.” David replies, “Well, then I think you’re screwed because you’re the world’s worst mentalist.” Lioz’s refusal to abandon his serious manner gives the judge one more joke to work with.
The Hacker gives Simon an audition
The final act begins with apparent technical trouble and a call from an unknown number. “Simon, I’m the hacker,” says the caller. “You and I are about to trade places.” A figure in an illuminated digital mask appears through fog, then takes a seat at the judges’ desk as Simon walks onstage.
Simon now has to answer the familiar audition questions. Asked what he would do with the prize money, he says he would keep it for himself. A stagehand brings out his magic table, trips and collapses it onto the stage. The production around him becomes another source of uncertainty.
Under instruction, Simon writes a word on a whiteboard. The Hacker names “melon,” and Simon holds up that word. Later, Simon removes a sheet reading “APPLE” from a suspended envelope. For a judge accustomed to asking how performers do their tricks, carrying out the instructions puts him in an awkwardly funny position.
The Hacker then presses the Golden Buzzer, showering Simon with confetti. Simon stands smiling beneath it, having received the full treatment usually reserved for contestants. Watch the video for the pauses around these payoffs: Matt trying to get through his toast, Amanda counting again, and Simon waiting onstage for his next instruction. Each performer makes that waiting part of the entertainment.