ULVERSTON magician and comedian Jack Rhodes said his 'head had popped' by the time he got to the final of ITV's Britain's Got Talent - with him having to take a rest minutes before his performance.
Jack, 26, came second in this year's show behind singer Sydnie Christmas. He released a video on his YouTube channel on June 10 explaining his journey in the competition.
"I did it on my terms," he said. "This is my job now - how mad is that."
Although Jack only quit his job as a nuclear engineer in January he dedicated time to honing his magic and comedy routine, and growing his social media presence, for many years before that.
The former Ulverston Victoria High School student was involved in the northern comedy circuit before the pandemic and the name of his upcoming live tour 'Part-Time Wizard Full-Time Moron' came from a set at Hot Water Comedy Club in Liverpool in 2019.
For years, he made YouTube videos showing his magic tricks in his garage.
His first encounter with BGT was as the 'The Phantom' magician in 2022. While invisible, he popped a balloon and pressed a buzzer on stage to the shock of the audience and the judges.
Two years later he revealed himself as 'The Phantom,' and performed his audition routine - which involved predicting that Simon Cowell would write cucumber months before the show and swapping the judges' cards without them noticing.
He also introduced a mystery man in a wetsuit - who remains unidentified.
Jack said: "That was the best gig ever. That was a moment I'll never forget."
Not expecting to reach the final - he gave a rare genuine reaction when his name was announced, only able to say 'that's good.'
Jack then only had three days to prepare for the final (Sunday, June 2) as everything had to be ready for the rehearsals on Saturday. Although the concept of a lie-detecting hat had been in his back pocket for a while, he only performed with a working one that did not use digital effects two times publicly.
The time before he put it on Simon's head, broadcast to millions across the nation, it had been used in front of a test audience of dozens in a working men's club.
He said: "To me the final was never really about the trick. It was a good trick and got an amazing genuine reaction from the judges. It was to show off my personality a bit and show off my range. I genuinely didn't mind where I placed."
He called Sydnie's win as 'fully deserved.' He said: "I want to say thanks to everybody that's supported that's voted. You've all been amazing I'm going to lie down for two or three weeks, I'm going to go on holiday. I'm going to come back - we're back at it. I'll see you later."
Rhodes starts his UK tour at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London on Wednesday, October 30.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here