Having a Voice

This is a detour from the clips I’ve been posting from international versions of The Voice.  But it’s a cousin of sort, which I came across on the same search.  It's from Britain's Got Talent.  And it's a total, utter, unabashed joy.

I was scrolling through YouTube one night and first came upon the video of a performance on Britain’s Got Talent, I was intrigued by the specific title of the video, but passed it by.  Then a short while later I saw another video whose title absolutely caught my eye, and I had to watch that one – and it turned out to be the same video.

The woman comes onstage and introduces herself as Shani.  And mentions that she'd performed on that stage 70 years ago.  And says that she's now 92.  Although the title of the video gives away the "surprise" of what was to come, I think (for reasons I'll explain in a moment) I might have grasped it right away.

One of the judges asked what she'd been doing that long ago.  And the woman mentions that people might know her from being the female lead in the Oscar-winning Best Picture, Oliver!  And that's when two of the judges are gobsmacked, and they and most of the audience suddenly get it.  And go wild.  Yes, it's Shani Wallis.  Who starred over half-a-century ago as 'Nancy' in the movie of Oliver!, made in 1968.

I don't want to say much else about Shani Wallis’s appearance here, to at least keep some of the surprises.  But I can't not add that this is wonderful.  And the two women judges, especially, add throughout to the palpable joy. 

(By the way, if you listen closely, after her performance, you can hear in the background at the very end, after the judges decide if she'll be moving on in the competition, before she walks offstage, they play her singing "As Long as He Needs Me" from the soundtrack of the movie.)

Why this is also such a treat for me is that Oliver! is one of my favorite movies.  And that's only in part because my fave Harry Secombe had a major role in it, playing the role of 'Mr. Bumble.'  I never went to movies all that much as a kid, so it's almost embarrassing to say how many times I saw Oliver! in the movie theater during its initial run.  And so I won't.  But I will say that I once went to the Edens Theater for the first showing of the movie for the day -- and sat through the remaining three screenings, and saw them all back-to-back-to-back-to-back.
 
So, watching this video was such a high treat.  The description online says this is from 2026 and as far as I can tell, it’s from early March.  So, it clearly must be extremely recent.

One important thing to add:  From what the video says in its description, it appears that this performance wasn’t aired on the broadcast, but was an “online extra.”  Apparently, the show posts some of these special performances on ITV’s streaming site under the heading of “BGT Unseen Extras.”  Assuming this is correct, it’s a shame – but…in fairness, Shani Wallis (even at 92…) shouldn’t have been competing with the others.  Still, though (if true), I suspect they told her ahead of time that it wouldn’t air, but that they’d release it on their “BGT Unseen Extra” site and on YouTube, where from the mass of comments it seems to have gotten a great deal of attention.  And the fact that they have a “BGT Unseen Extras” site suggests that this is something common that they do – special performances that don’t make it on the air, but which they still promote as bonus material.  And besides, I doubt they went after her to be on the show, she most likely came to them.  So – while I hope it did air – if it didn’t, I’m okay with them having her perform and releasing it on YouTube, where it appears to be getting a ton of views.  Deservedly so.

I'll note one odd thing.  For some reason, they edit her performance and cut out a verse.  It comes at the 2:57 mark, and jumps right to the bridge.  (Hey, I've seen the movie enough -- and listened to the various cast albums -- I know how the song goes...)  You can hear her stay, "The way..." and then they cut away to the two hosts in the wings.  What's cut is --

The way I feel inside
The love I have to hide
The hell! I've got my pride
As long as he needs me

If this had aired on TV, I would understand trimming it for time, but being an online extra, there isn't really a reason to.  Happily, it's a fairly smooth cut and if you don't know what's missing, it hard to notice.  And most happily, the performance still soars.

And as a bonus, just to put this all in perspective, here is Shani Wallis as ‘Nancy’ in the 1968 Oscar-winning Best Picture Oliver! – 58 years ago.