Oldcastle singing priest Fr Ray moves Britain's Got Talent audience to tears

Oldcastle parish priest Fr Ray Kelly went down a storm on last night’s Episode of Britain’s Got Talent with his audition prompting chief Judge Simon Cowell to say it was one of his “favourite” ever auditions on the show.
Fr Ray Kelly (64) moved the audience first to tears and then to their feet with his rendition of REM’s ‘Everybody Hurts’. His performance earned him a resounding four big ‘yeses’ from the judging panel.
Asked why he chose that particular song, Fr Ray said: “It’s a song that’s near and dear to my heart. I suppose being a priest, you get in touch with a lot of pain and joy and happiness as well so I feel it’s a song that I can relate to.”
Responding to Simon as to why he entered the show, Fr Ray said: “I thought maybe I’d be the first singing priest to win Britain’s Got Talent.”
Fr Ray is no stranger to Celt readers. The singing priest, as he is known locally, went viral four years ago when his performance at a wedding went viral. In April 2014, Fr Ray surprised a couple on their wedding day by singing a version of ‘Hallelujah’ from the altar. The video has been watched over 60 million times and resulted in a Late Late Show appearance.
Check out Fr Ray’s audition here – which saw him progress to the next stage of the competition, the selection for the live semi finals.

 

For those who have forgotten the video that first shot Fr Ray to the limelight – here it is: