Over the Rainbow (2010 TV series)


Over the Rainbow is a British television talent series that aired on BBC One from 26 March to 22 May 2010. It documented the search for a new, undiscovered musical theatre performer to play the role of Dorothy Gale in Andrew Lloyd Webber's 2011 stage production of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and a dog to play Toto for a one-off performance.
Produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, the series was presented by Graham Norton. It followed previous collaborations between the BBC and Lloyd Webber to find new musical theatre performers: How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, Any Dream Will Do and I'd Do Anything. The series was named after the song "Over the Rainbow" and was also aired by TV3 in Ireland.
Following a public telephone vote, 18-year-old Danielle Hope was crowned the winner of the series and was chosen to play Dorothy. Miniature Schnauzer Dangerous Dave was chosen to play Toto.
A Canadian version of the show aired on CBC Television in the autumn of 2012.

Format

Creation

Following the end of I'd Do Anything in 2008, Lloyd Webber announced he would not work on another talent show in 2009, so that he could work on the musical Love Never Dies, the sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, but that he would, however, return in 2010 to find a performer to play Dorothy Gale for a production of The Wizard of Oz. In July 2009, it was reported that the 2010 series had been dropped and would not take place until at least 2011, so that Lloyd Webber would not be criticised for promoting Love Never Dies, and that the series would be taken to commercial broadcaster ITV. Lloyd Webber later said that it was a scheduling clash solved by moving the series to later in the year.
The BBC announced the commission of the series in September 2009 with the title The Wizard of Oz; it would search for a performer, cast by the public, to play Dorothy and a dog to play Toto. Following the announcement, Lloyd Webber told The Daily Telegraph:
A big sticking point for me, this was. This is what the BBC wanted and I had to point out to them that as a cat man, this was not something that I was very happy about at all. The whole thing fills me with extreme concern. I might insist on having a cat on the programme, because I think the BBC as a public service broadcaster have got to give equal time in my view to cats.

Judges

A panel of judges assessed the contestants during the series. They were:
The Daily Mail reported that Denise van Outen, a judge during previous series, had been dropped due to her pregnancy, however this was denied by the BBC. John Barrowman, also a judge for previous series, wanted to judge on the series and he says the BBC wanted him to do it. However, he was already planning to star in American series Desperate Housewives when Talkback Thames asked him, and he turned down the offer.

Auditions

Applications for the series were solicited in November 2009 and auditions took place in Belfast, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester and London from January 2010.
110 auditionees were invited to the callbacks at the Hackney Empire in London, where they performed in front of Hancock, Partridge and casting director David Grindrod. The group was then narrowed down to 50, and later increased to 54 when four eliminated contestants were brought back into the competition. The final 54 were invited to attend 'Dorothy Farm', where they received vocal, choreography and acting classes before performing in front of Church, Partridge and Hancock. The panel then selected 20 girls to move on to the final round of auditions.
The top 20 performed in front of Lloyd Webber and the panel in a live show for a place in the final 10. The panel selected the final 10, with the public selecting one of the 10 contestants not chosen by the panel as the wildcard and eleventh finalist.

Live finals

The final eleven contestants competed in the live studio finals each Saturday from 3 April, with the results being announced in a pre-recorded results show on Sunday. Each week the contestants performed, receiving comments from the judges following their performance. The public would then get the chance to vote for their favourite Dorothy, and the two Dorothys with the fewest votes performed in a sing-off in front of Lloyd Webber during the results show. He would then decide which potential Dorothy to keep in the contest. To end the programme, the surviving Dorothys sang "We Thank You Very Sweetly", a verse from "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead", while the leaving Dorothy handed her shoes to the saved Dorothy, who gave them to Lloyd Webber. The eliminated Dorothy would then lead a performance of "Over the Rainbow" whilst carried on a crescent moon across the stage.
The live shows took place in the Fountain Studios in London. Profits from viewer votes went to the BBC Performing Arts Fund.

Toto

The series searched for a dog to play Toto for a one-off performance. The search was led by Jodie Prenger, winner of I'd Do Anything, along with dog trainer Gerry Cott and animal behaviour expert Sarah Fisher. The final 5 dogs were revealed on Sunday, 25 April.
DogAge*BreedColourOwnerStatus
Troy4½Cross-breedLime greenJackieEliminated
Spider5BeaglePurpleLucyEliminated
Missy3Cross-breedPinkAnnaEliminated
Eddie1Pug/Shih TzuSilverLucieEliminated
"Dangerous" Dave1Miniature SchnauzerBlueRachelWinner

*at start of series

Contestants

Twenty contestants made it through the first audition rounds and performed in the first live show. Ten of them were selected as finalists by the judging panel, while Emilie Fleming was selected as the wildcard and eleventh contestant following the public vote after the final audition round. Each finalist wore a unique coloured dress and silver slippers with bows on them which matched the dress. At the end of every live show, the losing Dorothy would have her shoes stripped by the Dorothy who survived the sing-off, and the shoes would be given to Lloyd Webber. The winner of the series, Danielle Hope, claimed a pair of ruby slippers as her prize, as well as the starring role. Sophie Evans, the runner-up of the series, would later become the alternate Dorothy.

Semi-finalists

ContestantAgeFrom
Tegan Edwards17Norfolk
Tasheka Coe28Wolverhampton
Sarah Middleton21Derby
Philippa O'Hara23Belfast
Katie Honan19Republic of Ireland
Emma Warren20Dublin
Claire Hillier25Wales
Claire Harbourne18Lancashire
Camille Mesnard21Merseyside

Finalists

ContestantAgeFromDress colourStatus
Amy Diamond22CheshireLavenderEliminated 1st in Week 1
Bronte Barbe18MacclesfieldBubble gum pinkEliminated 2nd in Week 2
Danielle "Dani" Rayner16CheshireOlive greenEliminated 3rd in Week 3
Emilie Fleming19NewcastleForest greenEliminated 4th in Week 4
Stephanie Davis17LiverpoolAcid yellowEliminated 5th in Week 5
Jenny Douglas18EdinburghBurgundyEliminated 6th in Week 6
Jessica Robinson18MiddlesbroughEmerald greenEliminated 7th in Week 6
Steph Fearon21LondonGoldenEliminated 8th in Week 7
Lauren Samuels22LondonCeriseEliminated 9th in Week 8
Sophie Evans17WalesPurpleRunner-up
Danielle Hope17Greater ManchesterRedWinner

*at start of series

Results summary

;Colour key

Episodes

Auditions: Top 20 selection

The series started on Friday, 26 March, and the first programme followed the open auditions, call-backs and the contestants at 'Dorothy Farm', concluding with the selection of the top 20.

Auditions: Top 10 selection

Aired on Saturday, 27 March, the second episode saw the top 20 contestants perform in front of the panel to secure a place in the top 10. In groups of four, they performed a pop song and a musical song, coached by a West End performer. The show performances were:
  • Group performances:
  • *"Yellow Brick Road / We're Off to See the Wizard"
  • '''Top 20 Performances'''

    Group 1

ActSongsResults
Camille Mesnard"Never Forget You" & "All That Jazz" from Chicago with coaching from Ruthie Henshall Eliminated
Jessica Robinson"Never Forget You" & "All That Jazz" from Chicago with coaching from Ruthie Henshall Advanced
Stephanie Davis"Never Forget You" & "All That Jazz" from Chicago with coaching from Ruthie Henshall Advanced
Sophie Evans"Never Forget You" & "All That Jazz" from Chicago with coaching from Ruthie Henshall Advanced