No singing, no women: It’s Saudi’s Got Talent

No singing, no women: It’s Saudi’s Got Talent

Contestants on the Arab show instead parade their skills in religious chanting, poetry and sporting feats dedicated to Allah and the Koran.

But Buraidah’s Got Talent is unlikely to produce another winner like BGT’s Susan Boyle, 51 â€" because only men are eligible to take part. Millions already watch Arabs Got Talent â€" the official spin-off of Simon Cowell’s popular format â€" which airs on Dubai-based TV channel MBC4.

That show sparked outrage when female singer Shamma Hamdan, 18, from the United Arab Emirates, appeared on TV without a headscarf.

Buraidah’s version takes place in an outside arena with a poet and a TV producer as judges.

It is organised by the ultra-strict Wahhabism branch of Islam. Followers took out a fatwa to ban women from driving cars because they think it may encourage them to have affairs.

TV mogul Cowell, 52 â€" whose hit show is produced by his Syco company â€" has 39 spin-offs across the globe in countries including Indonesia, Colombia and China.

But he is said to be unaware of the Buraidah version. A spokesman for Cowell said: “This programme has nothing to do with Syco or Simon.” Sun TV critic Ally Ross was unimpressed by the thought of the show. He said: “Religious chanting and sports events do not generally go â€" ask anyone who’s tried watching a Rangers v Celtic game on Sky Sports.

“But if the Saudis ban women from the judging panel, is there not something British TV can learn from this?

“Our BGT without singers, dancers, and women would only leave Pudsey the dog. He’d last about five minutes in showbiz without dance partner Ashleigh. Buraidah’s Got Talent? It’s a no from me, Wahhabis.”

a.france@the-sun.co.uk