An "appalled" dance school claims it was snubbed by Britain's Got Talent and that reaction to its Hillsborough-inspired routine was edited into footage of another contestant.
Boom Productions, a dance school based in Old Swan, were scouted by Britain's Got Talent to perform their Hillsborough tribute "Anne". But the group, made up of children aged between 10 and 17, were snubbed by the show when it came to performing in front of a live audience.
And Erin Johnson, deputy principal at Boom Productions, told the ECHO the group are "appalled" that crowd and judge reaction to their performance was allegedly edited into footage of another contestant. Erin, 31, told the ECHO: "When we performed it the judges were really emotional.
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"We could see Simon Cowell's lip wobbling. Bruno Tonioli was on his feet applauding and was visibly moved by it. Members of the audience were on their feet before the children had even finished their performance.
"Simon stopped auditions that day after we performed because he didn't think it would be right to carry on after it. We were told by producers Simon had never done this before – he did so to pay his respects."
Erin, whose sister Faye Casey, 35, is the principal of Boom Productions, said the children were applauded off the stage by the crew – and grown men were in tears after the performance. She added they knew there was a chance the routine might not make it onto television, but given they received four yeses and a standing ovation there was a strong chance.
Erin claimed it was "a political decision" by Britain's Got Talent not to include Boom Productions in the televised shows because they were worried about potential backlash, something ITV has denied. And she added it felt "spiteful" that Bruno's reaction to their performance was allegedly edited to look like it was in response to another performer.
Boom Productions decided to do a Hillsborough tribute after Erin watched the ITV drama "Anne" starring Maxine Peake. The drama tells the story of Anne Williams, whose son Kevin was among those unlawfully killed in the disaster in April 1989. Erin told the ECHO: "I wanted to tell the story of Anne's family but then realised there are 97 different stories to tell. I'm not political – the only way I can do something like that is by putting together a piece of art.
"The drama hit home after seeing Andy Burnham's speech at Anfield where the crowd calls for justice. We were scouted by Britain's Got Talent to do this performance. They wanted us to change parts of the routine but we said no – we wanted it to be a Hillsborough tribute."
Erin said the children understood the importance of their performance before they started. She added: "The kids understood the standing ovation wasn't for them – it was for the 97. All they wanted to do was make the families of the 97 proud.
"Their goal for the performance is to perform the routine at Anfield for the families of the 97 – they just hoped Britain's Got Talent would give them the platform."
Erin acknowledged that speaking out might invite some backlash against her, but added the support of the city has spurred her on to share Boom Production's story. She told the ECHO: "Red or blue, or even if you've never watched a football match, our city unites as one for those 97 victims and their families.
"We are standing in solidarity with them. Knowing we are keeping their stories relevant and educating generations of Scousers for years to come means more to us."
A Britain's Got Talent spokesperson told the ECHO: "This year saw a huge number of talented acts take to the Britain’s Got Talent stage and, as with any competition, unfortunately not everyone can go through to the next stage. Of 143 auditionees to receive a yes in the judges rounds, there were only 32 places available, outside of the eight Golden Buzzers, for the live shows.
"This led to some very difficult choices of deliberation and, sadly, a number of brilliant acts were unable to go through – including this one from Boom Productions. Nevertheless, we would like to thank Boom Productions – and say how grateful we are to them – for bringing their performance to us and everyone at Britain’s Got Talent wishes them all the luck for the future."
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