The Hawkstone Farmers Choir, a 32-member group funded by Jeremy Clarkson, won Britain's Got Talent 2024 on Saturday, taking home £250,000 and a Royal Variety Performance slot. The victory immediately sparked accusations of a fix on social media, with viewers claiming ITV favored Clarkson for free publicity. the choir was originally formed for a Hawkstone beer ad and now aims to raise mental health awareness among farmers.

The £250,000 prize that split the audience

According to the source , the choir won the public vote over nine other finalists, including fire juggler Liwei Yang and singer Sonny Green. Simon Cowell called it the "closest final ever," but viewers on X were unconvinced, with many calling the result "rigged." The accusation stems from Clarkson's existing relationship with ITV as host of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" giving the network an apparent conflict of interest.

From a beer commercial to a mental health crusade

The choir was originally assembled by Clarkson in 2024 for an advertising campaign for his Hawkstone lager brand, as the report notes. Led by farmers Simon Gwilliam and Lizzy Dean,the group evolved into a platform for raising funds and awareness around mental health in rural communities—a cause the choir highlighted in their final performance, singing "this is for all the farmers out there, it is not a taboo subject if you're not ok, speak up." This dual origin—commercial and charitable—has left some questioning the authenticity of the mission.

Simon Cowell's cheeky jibe and KSI's Golden Buzzer act

Cowell, a friend of Clarkson, joked during the semi-finals that seeing "Jeremy Clarkson's smug face" was the only downside of the choir's performance. Some viewers took this as evidence of bias. Meanwhile, the final opened with Liwei Yang, who had earned KSI's Golden Buzzer, performing a death-defying fire juggling act. Cowell exclaimed, "I thought you were on fire!" and KSI called it a "BGT winning performance," yet Yang did not win. The contrast between Yang's high-risk act and the choir's sentimental appeal illustrates the show's perennial tension between variety and vocal acts.

What remains unanswered about the voting outcome

The source reports widespread viewer suspicion but does not include any response from ITV or Britain's Got Talent producers about the fix allegations. Specific questions remain:How did the public vote break down by act? Did Clarkson's promotional machine influence the outcome? And what role, if any, did the judges' comments—especially Cowell's—play in swaying voters? The choir's win is the first for a choir in the show's history, but without transparent voting data, the legitimacy will be debated.