BBC4 does Britain’s Got Talent. Instead of a young hairdresser from Pontypool dreaming of being Beyoncé, we have her grandad in a band that supported The Who. Rhod Gilbert travels around the country in a battered Transit auditioning bands who play together once they’ve finished their day jobs. The best five get to perform in regional heats, where two are put through to the final.
This week he’s accompanied by Midge Ure to hear bands in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The bonhomie, passion and musicianship they find among bands that can’t make a decent living from music lead Midge to rant about the wider industry being “hijacked by mediocrity”.