BGT blackout
Britain’s Got Talent goes off air for almost 15 minutes after London storms cause technical glitch
BRITAIN'S Got Talent went off air for almost 15 minutes in a MASSIVE technical blunder.
Viewers were left looking at a blank screen after the show disappeared due to a fault.
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An ITV announcer said: "We're having some issues - we hope to return to the show as soon as possible.
"We hope to return as soon as possible and we are working to fix the issue."
Bosses had to show old footage of auditions to fill the gap.
After almost 15 minutes, BGT finally returned and host Declan Donnelly had to apologise for the mishap.
He blamed the issues on the bad weather in London.
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Dec said: "Welcome, back the weather has caused some technical difficulties so apparently some of you didn't get the first part of this episode at home."
Simon Cowell then made a joke, poking fun at Dec's missing presenting partner Ant McPartlin and blaming him for taking the show off-air.
He said: "I was just going to say, Ant you are coming back next year, you didn't have to do that."
Ant is missing the live shows after stepping away from his telly work following his drink drive shame.
This year’s live shows are coming from the Hammersmith Apollo in London.
It’s the first time the series has ever come from a location other than a TV studio.
Declan Donnelly presents Britain's Got Talent without Ant McPartlin for the first time
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Viewers flocked to Twitter to complain about the disruption, with many left baffled by how the weather could knock out a major TV network.
One wrote: "Wow that must be some storm in London to have taken the #BGT live finals off air for a full 15 minutes almost."
Another added: "#BritainsGotTalent #BankHolidayMonday ends with some drama. It's that old favourite suspect 'The Weather'...
"It actually managed to pull off air the entire live feed of #bgt tonight..."
A third wrote: "So far,dancing singing and a blackout. #winetime #BritainsGotTalent #BGT."
After the show returned to the air, there was just a few minutes of entertainment before they cut to ads - and the move irritated viewers.
Earlier today, Dec revealed they had been busy rehearsing all day and had been working hard to ensure the first show would go without a hitch.
Describing the atmosphere in the theatre, Dec told his fans on Twitter: “It’s pretty spectacular. Looking forward to seeing you later!”
He also revealed he had brought his beloved dog Rocky to the set as moral support as he hosted for the first time without Ant.
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There were two halves to tonight's show, with the results after Coronation Street on the same channel.
Dec ended up having to apologise to Corrie fans as BGT over-ran and the soap was five minutes late starting.
There was more drama on the show as paramedics were
As well as casting their eye on hopefuls around Britain, this year the producers even went to scout talent in Benidorm, Spain.
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The winners of Britain's Got Talent will perform in front of the Royal family at the Royal Variety Performance.
For the past five years, the winner has also won a prize fund of £250,000.
It has not been confirmed whether or not that will be the same in the 2018 show.
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