Latest news with #TimBrentnall
Western Telegraph
20 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- Western Telegraph
'Brilliant' Britain's Got Talent for Roch sub-postmaster
Former Roch sub postmaster Tim Brentnall is still buzzing from his Britain's Got Talent experience with Hear our Voice, the joyous choir of people whose lives have all been directly affected by the Horizon scandal, that had the BGT judges and audience on its feet. He was initially reluctant to join when fellow sub postmaster Mark said that he wanted to start a singing group. (Image: Tim Brentnall) 'He approached a few of us at a BBC event and suggested that we do something nice together,' said Tim. 'We got on a group of people but only was each other at enquiries or events to do with the negative past. 'At that point I said anything but singing.' However, encouraged by his partner Steph, he went to the first rehearsals and began to enjoy the experience. By this point the choir had enlisted Will and the People who had offered them access to their back catalogue of songs and joined to give the choir support. The choir practised online right up until the day before the Britain's Got Talent audition in Blackpool's Winter Gardens, when they all sang together in the same room for the first time. 'I remember saying. We will either be able to do it in an hour's time or we will be able to do it,' said Tim. 'It was terrifying. When you stand out in practice in a 5,000 seat theatre, I was thinking 'what have I got myself into', said Tim. 'But you are standing there with people who have supported each other through the worst times. "We wanted to stand together and show how strong we are. The desire to get out there was much stronger than the fear.' (Image: Britain's Got Talent/ ITV) All the judges loved their performance and chose them for the semi-finals. The reaction at the semi finals was just as positive with the judges praising the joyful and unifying performance and the public vote sending them through to the finals. 'To get the public vote to win the semi final was so heartening,' said Tim. 'It showed that people still care about our story. It was brilliant. 'We never expected to reach the finals. We were happy to keep our story alive.' The story continues to be kept alive with the release yesterday, Saturday, June 7, of Falling Down, a collaboration between Will and the People and Hear our Voice. The track has been released across all streaming platforms and a physical copy will also be available to buy. All money raised will support Lost Chances, a charity for the children of sub postmasters and the Horizon Shortfall Fund charity. (Image: Britain's Got Talent/ ITV) 'We set up the choir with three objectives; to keep our story in the public eye, to give people in the choir something joyful in a safe, therapeutic environment and to raise some money for the two sub post masters' charities.' So far the single has had a very positive reception with airtime on BBC Radio 2 and Radio Wales. 'For me being in the choir has been brilliant,' said Tim. 'I'm still in a complicated battle with the Post Office which is almost totally consuming of my energy and time. 'This has been a really good distraction. "When I've got a song to learn or a practice it's very mindful. A good way away from the negative things. 'We've got to know each other much better and support each other really well. You've always got these people you can reach out to when you need a pick up. "It's been really good like that.' To stream Falling Down by Will and the People and Hear our Voice, go to linked above.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Hear Our Voice: How choir helps Post Office scandal victims
A singer in a choir made up of victims of the Post Office scandal and their families has described it as the "most joyful" experience which has seen their confidence grow since having their wrongful convictions Brentnall, from Roch, Pembrokeshire, was among hundreds of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses prosecuted after its Horizon computer system incorrectly recorded financial said they previously had met only at "horrible events like public inquiries or court dates" in the years it took to clear their names, so some decided to start the choir, Hear Our charity single will help colleagues and their children with many still seeking compensation. A Post Office spokesperson said it "apologised unreservedly" to the victims of the Horizon IT scandal and was focused on paying redress as quickly as Brentnall said: "It's been absolutely fantastic to get to know this group of people even better and do something so positive together. "It's given people something to focus on, and you can certainly see in the group, people have really grown in confidence, not just happiness," he told BBC Radio Wales' Breakfast."It was, it still is, the most joyful thing that I've ever done." The choir reached the finals of ITV show Britain's Got Talent last weekend which Mr Brentnall described as a "fantastic" and "crazy" experience which was "terrifying for everybody"."Everybody stood up and applauded us which was amazing," he added. Mr Brentnall explained the Horizon scandal had not yet been resolved with him and other former postmasters and mistresses trying to settle compensation claims."My claim, and everybody's claim, is not plucked out of thin air - it's put together by forensic accountants and people much cleverer than I am."You submit it and the Post Office and their legal team go through it and come back with a cost minimised claim."Then you have to rewrite it, resubmit, and it's a fight to get to somewhere that's acceptable where, if there was a will, they could just pay everybody's claims tomorrow."
Wales Online
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Britain's Got Talent star admit 'overwhelmed' just hours before final
Britain's Got Talent star admit 'overwhelmed' just hours before final Britain's Got Talent choir Hear Our Voice will take to the stage on Saturday night BGT choir overwhelmed with support they have been given Just hours before the Britain's Got Talent final, a member of the Hear Our Voice choir, impacted by the Post Office scandal, confessed the group feels "overwhelmed". The choir, which wowed judges Bruno Tonioli, Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, and Alesha Dixon with their performance, will take the stage again on Saturday (May 31) night. Ahead of their appearance in the final, choir members Tim Brentnall, Jess Kaur, and Mark Wildblood spoke on Good Morning Britain, sharing their emotional journey. Mark explained that the choir was formed as a response to the negativity surrounding the Post Office controversy: "There was so much negativity coming out of the Post Office scandal and it was a long, bureaucratic, drawn-out process that we were just fed up with all of the negativity." Hear Our Voice choir members Tim Brentnall, Jess Kaur and Mark Wildblood appeared on GMB He continued, "I thought, what can we do just to make something a bit more positive, so here we are. The people have all had pretty negative lives because of this but we've created something joyous." Entertainment reporter Richard Arnold noted that the choir has not only unified the nation but also its members, who have formed strong bonds. Mark agreed, "Absolutely, the bonding we have got within the group and we are so thankful for the support from the public to get us here it's just been phenomenal," reports Belfast Live. As the bookies' favourite, the choir is set to captivate audiences once again with their performance. He expressed his gratitude, saying: "We're overwhelmed by that and the family that we have created now is just a beautiful thing so thank you BGT as well." In another segment of the show, Tim disclosed the significant tattoo he and his fellow performers decided to get in honour of their audition song on Britain's Got Talent. Hear Our Voice have made it through to the BGT final on Saturday (May 30) night When Richard enquired about the tattoo, Tim displayed the words etched on his forearm, which read: "I get the feeling that this isn't just a me thing." Article continues below The tattoo alludes to the infamous scandal where sub-postmasters were misled into believing they were the sole individuals facing IT accounting issues. Explaining the tattoo's significance, he remarked: "A few of us have got it now. It's a lyric from the first song we did in Blackpool. When we heard it for the first time, it really struck a chord with us because we were all told, you're the only person this is happening to, and to hear the song saying, 'I get the feeling it isn't just a me thing.'" Britain's Got Talent: The Final airs Saturday at 7pm on ITV and ITVX.
Western Telegraph
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Western Telegraph
Roch sub postmaster and choir in Britain's Got Talent finals
Former Roch sub postmaster, Tim Brentnall, is part of the Hear Our Voice Choir, a group of singers whose lives have all been directly affected by the Horizon scandal. Tim Brentnall was one of 736 sub postmasters caught up in the IT scandal and was wrongfully convicted as a result of faults in accounting software developed by Fujitsu for Horizon. (Image: ITV/ Britain's Got Talent) A group of those sub post-masters came together to form the Hear Our Voice Choir. 'We only meet up when we were going through some terrible times,' said Tim. 'And we wanted to put something together that gave us some joy. 'The choir started as a support group, we wanted something joyful to do together. 'We just want to get out there and perform and show people how much strength we get from each other. The choir's performance both in their initial audition and the semi finals, both introduced by Tim, certainly gave both the audience and the judges joy, as well as the choir members who delivered a powerful and emotional performance on both occasions. (Image: ITV/ Britain's Got Talent) 'what a journey you've been on and a journey you are still on,' said judge Alesha Dixon. 'But tonight, I felt so joyful listening to that chorus, it was so beautiful. 'Music is so healing. Coming together in unity is so healing I'm thrilled that you've got each other and I'm thrilled that you have had a stellar night." All judges criticised the injustice that the choir members had suffered and called for speedy resolution. The public voted in their favour and last Sunday's semi-final public vote saw Tim and the choir voted through to this weekend's finals. Tim was prosecuted in 2010 after a shortfall was discovered at his branch. Originally, he was told he would be convicted for theft when the Horizon system showed £22,500 missing from the Post Office counter at Roch Gate Stores, owned and managed by Tim's family. He was one of 12 former sub-postmasters who saw their convictions quashed at the Court of Appeal on Monday, July 19 2021. 'It's had a huge toll,' Tim told Britain's got Talent. 'It's a constant fight. We lost our businesses, homes, relationships. Some people went to prison. All over an IT system that didn't work.' He added that the Britain's Got Talent experience had been affirming for the choir members. 'It's so joyful for us,' he said. 'We love doing this together. Thank you to the judges, to Britain's Got Talent for all the support we have had from everybody. We really feel it and it means so much to us.' Tim and Hear Our Voice will go up against acts including Blackouts, Olly Pearson, Jasmine Rice and Joseph Charm, Vinnie McKee, Stacey Leadbeatter, Ping Pong Pang on ITV at 7pm on Saturday, May 31. Good luck Tim, Pembrokeshire is rooting for you.
Pembrokeshire Herald
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Pembrokeshire postmaster Tim Brentnall through to BGT final with Post Office choir
A PEMBROKESHIRE man once wrongly convicted during the Post Office Horizon scandal has reached the final of Britain's Got Talent as part of a moving choir performance that has captured the public's attention. Tim Brentnall, from Roch near Newgale, was prosecuted in 2010 after a £22,000 shortfall appeared at his branch — one of 736 sub-postmasters caught up in the Post Office's faulty Horizon computer system. Now, Mr Brentnall is one of the key members of the 'Post Office Scandal Choir,' which earned a place in the final of the ITV talent show following a powerful performance in Saturday's semi-final (May 18). The group performed 'Something Inside So Strong' and received a standing ovation from the judges and audience. Viewers at home voted them through to next weekend's live final. Mr Brentnall, who appeared as the choir's spokesperson on the night, told the audience: 'We're here to share our story and hopefully bring something positive out of everything that's happened.' His conviction was quashed in 2021, after years of campaigning exposed serious flaws in the Horizon IT system and the way the Post Office handled the resulting cases. A public inquiry into the scandal is ongoing, with calls for faster compensation and greater accountability. The choir was formed earlier this year to bring together former sub-postmasters affected by the scandal. Their appearance on Britain's Got Talent has brought renewed national attention to their experiences and efforts to rebuild. The Britain's Got Talent final airs on Sunday, May 26 at 7:30pm on ITV1. Watch their semi-final performance in the video below.
