BRITAIN’S Got Talent bosses have insisted the live finals will go ahead this year – despite fears lockdown will delay the show until 2021.
Producers are plotting ways to save the show after the live shows – normally held over Easter and hosted by Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly – were scrapped.
But insiders told the Mirror the chances of the live shows going ahead as planned are “very slim”.
A source said: “The initial plan was that the final could be filmed this autumn, but that’s looking increasingly unlikely.
“We can’t imagine an audience of that size being allowed. I’d say its chances were very slim.”
Judge Amanda Holden has claimed that she was told by production to keep “early autumn” free for filming after the coronavirus pandemic forced them to postponed their live shows for the current series.
But the broadcaster insisted that she, production nor her fellow judges Alesha Dixon, David Walliams and Simon Cowell would ever do series without a studio audience.
An ITV spokesman said: “The Britain’s Got Talent audition shows will broadcast on ITV in the next few weeks.
“We have been working with the brilliant production teams at Thames and Syco to find a way of making the live finals work, which were due to be broadcast at the end of May.
“However, in light of the latest government health guidelines and in line with our priority of safeguarding the well-being of everyone involved in our programmes, production of the live shows cannot go ahead as planned.
“The live finals will therefore be broadcast later in the year.”