Britain’s Got Talent’s infamous contestant The Witch has revealed he almost died while backstage but it was never shown on TV.
Actor Martin Portlock recently declared that he was the man behind the scary costume, over a year after appearing on the hit ITV show.
Martin also revived his petrifying yet popular character for the spin-off, Britain’s Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician, which aired last year December.
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However, Martin claims that during the spin-off show he came face to face with death when he tried to handle a snake backstage.
(Image: ITV)
He told The Sun: “One thing you didn’t see on TV was that I nearly died.
“I did this performance where a snake comes out of this teddy bear, and when I was backstage, I tried to handle the snake, who was called Kevin, for the first time.
“Now, I’m not an animal handler, and this thing came up to me and it absolutely loved the heat of my neck. The next thing I know, this massive snake coiled itself right around my neck and went so tight, I was almost strangled.”
Martin, 41, took on the role for the BGT semi-finals after the original actor- who still chooses to remain anonymous – pulled out after the audition.
(Image: ITV)
The star also went on to reveal that keeping his identity a secret became a huge task and only a few producers knew who he really was.
After Martin’s first appearance on the show, many fans speculated who could be behind the garish costume with many attaching famous faces such as Stephen Mulhern or Keith Lemon to the character.
Martin confirmed that he took on the role of the character on Instagram earlier this month.
(Image: Dymond/Thames/REX/Shutterstock)
He wrote: “Feel free to share. It’s no longer a secret. So… one year ago today I performed on stage for television. Although it’s been a bit of a secret for the past year, my identity as ‘The Witch’ was unknown!
“I can now confirm that The Witch on Britain’s Got Talent 2022 WAS ME! I am an actor here in the U.K.
“I performed in front of 4000 people at the London, Hammersmith Apollo Theatre, live on national television for ITV in the semi-finals and again in Manchester as the finale for the Christmas special ‘The Ultimate Magician’. I hope you all liked the performances.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
