Britain's Got Talent child star looks unrecognisable 19 years on from first auditioning

Cast your mind back to 2007: Spider-Man 3 was the highest-grossing film of the year, the Harry Potter book series concluded, and British tenor Paul Potts was the inaugural Britain’s Got Talent winner.

The beloved ITV programme, heading into its 20th series next year, has seen the rise of many a famous face, including Susan Boyle, who earned a shout-out from Timothée Chalamet last year, and Calum Scott, who topped the charts with his cover of ‘Dancing on My Own’ by Robyn in 2015.

But back in 2007, there was a six-year-old girl competing for the crown who won the heart of the nation: Connie Talbot.

19 years ago, the singer impressed the nation by singing Judy Garland’s ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’, taken from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.

At the time, BGT stalwart Simon Cowell hailed Talbot as ‘pure magic’ and claimed she would make ‘one million-plus’ in record sales.

The youngster made it into the 2007 final after charming the audience with her penultimate performance of ‘Ben’ by Michael Jackson, but was pipped at the post by Potts.

Despite not receiving her flowers on the evening, Cowell swooped in and signed her to his now-defunct record label, Sony BMG, which later dropped her.

Upon pulling out of the supposedly lucrative deal, the company claimed: “The decision not to proceed was made with the best intentions for Connie, taking into consideration her age and that it would not be right to do so at this time.”

Some may have been deterred, but not Talbot, who is due to turn 26 this November.

The singer-songwriter has since released four records, three EPs—the latest of which, Original, arrived on 15 May—and a variety of singles, including covers of Sam Smith’s ‘Lay Me Down’ and Alesso’s ‘Heroes’.

She's also supported the likes of Boyce Avenue on tour.

On 25 September, the British singer dropped an updated cover of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ on Instagram, and she looks unrecognisable.

“Just posted a spontaneous video, virtual concert saw it first. Miss my little community, I’ll be back soon with more vids,” she promised.

Friends and fans flocked to the Instagram video’s comments to have their say on the cover.

“My very favorite song of all time! Nobody doesn’t like you, Connie thank you for you!!,” said Broadway co-producer Michael Scott wrote.

Another fan commented: “Your voice is so beautiful so hypnotizing.”

“Love you, Connie. Your voice IS Out of this world,” replied a third.

Someone else added: “Most underrated voice ever.”

In 2019, Talbot returned to her BGT roots to compete on The Champions spin-off show, hosted by Ant & Dec.

The six-episode TV show saw Twist and Pulse crowned winners. Stavros Flatley was cast as runner-up, and sand artist Kseniya Simonova came in third.

The ‘Never Give Up On Us’ star was eliminated in the preliminary round.

It’s reported that Britain’s Got Talent: The Champions will return to mark the programme’s 20th anniversary in Autumn 2027.

TV Zone reported that the series will be made-up of five pre-recorded episodes and a live final.