Arundel man has ‘once in a lifetime’ experience on ITV’s Starstruck
and live on Freeview channel 276
James Hutchinson, 32, was on Starstruck, the show that transforms people with musical talent into pop stars.
Four teams of three appear on the show and battle it out every week for a chance to win £50,000.
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Hide AdJames said the lead up to the show made him nervous. He said: “I barely get stage fright anymore but I did get some nervousness about the show as I hadn’t seen any of it and knowing it would be shared with over five million people was crazy.
“It was hard keeping everything a big secret for so long, my dad Paul and his partner Sue came down for the weekend to watch and I invited some friends round to have a ‘watch party’ which was great fun.”
Performing as Gary Barlow was a great opportunity, said James. He added: “What a great opportunity and experience I got from being Gary.
“Studying his every move for over 6 months was intense but I feel I gave it my best shot at becoming Gary Barlow and he was backing the show also saying ‘if you aren’t watching Starstruck then you should be’.
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Hide Ad“He even recorded a special video message which made me shed a few tears, as I embodied Gary for so long I felt like I knew him, then seeing that video was incredible.”
James said that listening back to the judges’ comments after his performance was a positive experience. He added: “The judges comments were so positive, and sums up how the show was from start to finish – such a positive experience.
“I remember when I was singing I heard Adam Lambert say ‘nice’ which was so good to hear, especially coming from someone like him.
“Beverley and Sheridan mentioned about embodying Gary and showing off that natural laid back but positive nature which I feel we all had during our performance despite all the nerves.”
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Hide AdJames added that he gave his best efforts despite not getting through to the final sing off. He said: “We were up against some tough competition in my episode, but to take away such amazing friendships from this show alone is a prize money can’t buy, I had one of the most amazing experiences doing this show – if I could do it all over again I would.
Overall, James said going on Starstruck and having that experience was amazing. He said: “It was a dream come true.
“It’s something I have always wanted to do, after watching The Voice, X Factor etcetera, I always wanted the opportunity to perform on a big stage and be on TV, and this was my big moment.
“It was incredible working with so many people in the industry, including Olly Murs’ creative director from his tour, Elizabeth Honan.
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Hide Ad“I have been a huge fan of hers for years, especially with her success behind Girls Aloud and the iconic the promise routine they did.
“Working with Juliet Russell who was our vocal coach, she is the lead vocal coach on The Voice so to have that opportunity was something money can’t buy.
“And most of all having such a fantastic experience from the audition stage to the final edits of the show it has been a once in a lifetime experience.”
If you missed James’ episode, you can watch it back on the ITV hub.
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