Emmerdale fans only just realising where they've seen Billy star Jay Kontzle
Jay Kontzle is currently best known for playing Billy Fletcher in Emmerdale, where he is now a fan favourite. However, long before he was tangled up in dramatic soap storylines from dodging punches in the illegal boxing rings or his young son's leukaemia diagnosis, he was belting out tunes on national TV, which found him with Simon Cowell's stamp of approval.
Many fans haven't been able to connect the dots, but he was a member of The Mend, a Manchester-based group formed in 2008 by the former Take That manager Nigel Martin-Smith. They first appeared on TV on The X Factor in 2011. However, their stint quickly came to an end when, at boot camp, producers discovered they had a management deal, which is against the rules.
But they decided to give it another try the following year, this time auditioning for Britain's Got Talent. During their performance, a young Jay said, 'We've all got problems at home, but we'll keep doing music until we can sort them out.'
They performed a part-rapped, part-sung cover of Otis Redding's Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay, blowing the audience away—and Cowell, too. 'I'm very happy you auditioned. I like you a lot,' he told them.
The Mend made it all the way to the final, eventually finishing in seventh place. The group later supported Little Mix on their 2013 DNA tour, which helped them gain a solid teenage fanbase.
In 2015, the group decided to call it quits.
While reflecting on that chapter of his life, he told Cheshire Live, "Being part of The Mend was a huge life experience for me and some of the best times of my life.'
"Obviously, being on tour and performing live on TV gave me so much experience, but as we grew older, we realised that as a boy band that catered for teenagers, we couldn't keep re-inventing ourselves."
Although he rubbed shoulders with music royalty over the years, he admits the music industry wasn't for him. While he did enjoy the performing side, there was a side he didn't enjoy.
"The best thing about being in a band was the insight I got into the industry,' he told Inside Soap.
"We worked with people at the top of their game, like Simon Cowell. But in the end, the business side of music put me off. It was an experience! I don't really talk about it now because I've kind of moved on."
And he decided to take a different route, after he was tipped off by a casting session by his friend Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas in 2018, where he landed the part of Billy Fletcher - a reformed bad boy who turned into a doting Husband to Dawn. Viewers love the couple, but recent episodes have seen Billy hiding some major secrets - including the fact that he's risking his life in illegal fights to support his family.
But this isn't his first explosive - including a wedding ambushed by serial killer Meena Jutla, and the heartbreak of their son Evan's illness.
However his career started outside the Dingle Family, his acting credits include Fresh Meat with Jack Whitehall, a role in Diana and I, a cheeky Moonpig advert, and behind-the-scenes work on the films Underwater and Bring Back My Bonnie.
Despite the different career avenues he has gone, this career seems to be exactly where he's meant to be. "It wasn't until I went that everything fell into place and the role really suited me. It's been a very busy and exciting time since then, and I am very happy," he said
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