George Sampson is returning to ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ this weekend – a decade after being told he may never be able to dance again.
image source: bt tv
The 26-year-old was just a teenager when he won the second series of Simon Cowell’s talent show in 2008 and there were fears he’d have to stop performing when he needed back surgery the following year.
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However, on Saturday (21.09.19) George – who took part in an arena tour before joining ‘Emmerdale’ in 2016 – will be back dancing on television as part of ‘Britain’s Got Talent: The Champions’, and he admitted there was “no chance” of him retiring.
He told the Daily Mirror newspaper:
“round a year after winning BGT, I sustained a really bad back injury and doctors told me I might never be able to dance again.
“I love dance, that’s all I ever wanted to do. To be told bluntly, ‘no’, was devastating… I’m stubborn.
“There was no chance I was going to stop dancing. It’s been a long road to recovery, but I’ve worked hard and I’m back.”
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After his comeback performance – set to air this weekend – judge David Walliams compared him to the titular ballet dancing lead character in ‘Billy Elliot’.
He said:
“You are the real-life Billy Elliot. At the end of the film you see that he’s turned into a beautiful swan – and that is what has happened to you. You are a superstar.”
Since appearing on ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ over a decade ago, George turned his attention to acting with roles in the likes of ‘Waterloo Road’, ‘Mount Pleasant’ and ‘The Dumping Ground’.
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Earlier this year, he took part in ‘Celebrity Coach Trip’ alongside Roxanne Pallet as the pair finished third on the E4 reality show.