Former Wells Cathedral chorister wins national competition

Belinda Gifford-Guy said the competition was an "absolutely amazing" experience

A 12-year-old singer's "dream has come true" after she won the 2023 BBC Young Chorister of the Year competition.

Former Wells Cathedral chorister, Belinda Gifford-Guy, was up against two other finalists in the competition run by Songs of Praise and BBC Radio 2.

Her mother, Linda Gifford-Guy, said it was "exciting" to see her daughter win something she had always watched on TV.

Belinda, who took up singing aged five, said it was an "absolutely amazing" experience

On the show, judges Ken Burton, Wynne Evans and Laura Wright praised her for her "endearing" and "joyful" ability to "tell a story" through her performance.

Linda Gifford-Guy said she is "extremely proud" of her daughter

"It felt unreal, it was literally a dream come true," Belinda said of the final.

"Everyone was amazing."

She said she had been singing since she was five-years-old, beginning in a choir at Dorchester Abbey in Oxfordshire.

"The choir director there told me I had a really good voice and I did my first solo there and then I moved to Wells auditioning to be a chorister at Wells Cathedral and did lots of concerts after that," she said.

"I couldn't believe it when we received a phone call from the BBC saying I'd got through to the semi-finals.

"It was super fun, I made so many lovely friends and the atmosphere was absolutely buzzing - it was just lovely."

The judges said Belinda showed an "amazing storytelling ability" in her performances

Belinda's mother said she is "incredibly proud" of her.

"It was unexpected. It's something that Belinda had seen people do on the television and listened to on the radio for years and had always wanted to do," she said.

Wells Cathedral School's head of vocal studies, Christopher Finch, accompanied Belinda to the competition and said it was a "privilege" to watch her perform.

"I was absolutely delighted by the professionalism, musicianship and the pure joy that she showed through both days of filming

"Belinda has done incredibly well to rise to the top of such a competitive field."

Belinda will now sing on the BBC Radio 4 daily service just before Christmas and perform on Songs of Praise on Christmas Eve.