Britain's Got Talent dance stars spark mixed response amid 'satanism' concerns

Daily Mirror

18-05-2025

Japanese dance act IDOLLS sent all kinds of chills down the spines of viewers as they took to the Britain's Got Talent stage on Sunday night as they battled for a place in the final
Britain's Got Talent was accused of encouraging satanism after dance group IDOLLS left some viewers scared out of their wits. The latest round of semi-finalists competed on ITV's long-running talent contest on Sunday night, with the show airing a day later than expected due to the FA Cup Final.
With the show airing on a Sunday, some viewers were alarmed to see a haunting performance. Japanese dance troupe IDOLLS wore victorian era outfits and painted their faces deathly white as they showed off their dance skills in front of judges Simon Cowell, Alesha Dixon, Bruno Tonioli and Amanda Holden.
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With zombie-esque moves and ice-cold contact lenses on their eyes, the performance had a creepy edge to it. Taking to X, one viewer hit out at the performance, writing: "Some genuine satanism on #BGT, the devil is not hiding his face anymore. Gross and creepy."
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Another viewer simply wrote: "I'm scared #BGT." While a conflicted viewer wrote: "They are good but the IDOLLS freak me out…"
Other viewers loved the dance routine - even the scary parts. One typed on X: "The jump scare was a brilliant bit of choreo. Dance acts are so frequent on this show, but none like them #BGT" - alongside clapping hands emojis.
Another wrote: "An actual entertaining dance act for a change #bgt #britainsgottalent." And another satisfied viewer typed: "Loved that from Idolls - very refreshing and totally different. I love this kind of thing very creepy and hauntingly brilliant #BGT."
Head judge Simon Cowell was thrilled by the performance and gushed: "I've always wanted dancing vampires to win this show" - before adding that the act stood with a chance after wowing the judges and live studio audience.
Similarly, Amanda Holden also urged viewers to vote for the act as she agreed she wanted to see them in the final. She gushed: "It was eerie. They are dolls. I believed them, Simon. It was sort of murderous and chaotic and eerie and absolutely brilliant. And you are on first, as Alesha said, a great opener. I hope people don't forget about you by the end of the show. They need to vote."
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Sunday marked the penultimate semi-final show of the 2025 season of Britain's Got Talent, with six acts already through to the grand final. Singer Vinnie McKee was the first to be voted by the public to make to the final - while dancers The Blackouts were the first golden buzzer group to make it to the final.
Singer Stacey Leadbeatter and tabel tennis themed dancers Ping Pong Pang have also been voted to the final by viewers. While guitar playing child singer Olly Pearson and opera singing drag queen Jasmine Rice also received golden buzzers to go to the final.
Child magician Teddy Magic was due to perform during the first semi-final of the season - but withdrew seconds before he was due on stage. He later withdrew from the competition altogether - with his parents hopeful the eight-year-old can return for a future season of the show.
There are concerns for Britain's Got Talent's future, however, as the show has been losing viewers for the second year in a row. Viewing figures have revealed the show has dropped to less than 6 million viewers per episode - however, the series has pulled in a larger audience compared to some BBC shows it has gone up against.