Britain's Got Talent names Bruno Tonioli's temporary replacement
Britain's Got Talent season 18 spoilers follow.
Britain's Got Talent has named Bruno Tonioli's temporary replacement for next season.
The former Strictly Come Dancing judge will miss some BGT episodes filmed this month because of his commitments to Dancing with the Stars in the US.
Hip-hop star, professional boxer, and social media influencer KSI will stand in for Bruno for three days when Britain's Got Talent holds its auditions in Blackpool later this month.
"I’m so excited to be a guest judge for BGT," KSI said in a statement. "When I got the call-up, I couldn’t believe it. I remember watching old BGT episodes and going from being amazed to laughing my arse off. I’m buzzing to see all the fresh new talent, and I’ll be sure to leave a mark."
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"Who better than a young, attractive, multi-talented star known the world over, filling in for another young, attractive, multi-talented star known the world over," Bruno added.
"In all seriousness, I can think of no one better to keep my seat warm than the wonderful KSI, even though I spend most of the show out of it anyway… I’ll be itching to get back to the judging panel for another year of laughter, tears and everything in between."
KSI has more than 50 million followers across all of his social media channels. He recently featured in the Prime Video documentary KSI: In Real Life and took on Love Island star Tommy Fury in a controversial boxing match in 2023.
There had previously been reports that Bruno could be leaving Britain's Got Talent following its most recent season, which wrapped up in May with singer Sydnie Christmas winning the live final.
Simon Cowell swiftly denied there was any truth to claims BGT would replace Bruno with comedian Alan Carr during an interview with the Heart Breakfast Show in June.
"I don’t know where all this stuff comes from," he said. "I spoke to the producers literally two weeks ago about it. There is a scheduling issue with Bruno because we’re doing some of the auditions this year and he’s going to be in America."
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Cowell mentioned the possibility of a "stand-in" on the dates when Bruno wasn't available, with KSI now filling that role on the BGT judging panel.
Bruno joined the Britain's Got Talent judging panel in 2023 as a replacement for David Walliams. His fellow judges are Cowell, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden.
Cowell recently shot down any suggestions he would retire from telly, telling Hello!: "I'll probably drop dead doing what I'm doing. As long as I think there's a need or a purpose and it's something I can do well, I'm up for it."
Britain's Got Talent airs on ITV1 and ITVX.
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