Stars in Their Eyes is a British television talent show, based on Joop van den Ende’s Dutch TV format Soundmixshow. It featured a singing contest in which members of the public impersonate showbiz stars. Each contestant would walk through ‘smoky’ doors before instantly reappearing dressed up as their chosen star. A number of celebrity specials and a childrens’ spin-off series have also aired during the original run.
The show premiered on 21 July 1990 and ran until 23 December 2006. It was produced by Granada for ITV and originally presented by Leslie Crowther. Matthew Kelly took over in May 1993, before he was replaced by Cat Deeley in 2004. An Elvis Presley special hosted by Russ Abbot aired in January 1993, as well as 2003 specials hosted by Davina McCall. A six-part revival hosted by Harry Hill ran from 10 January 2015 to 14 February 2015, before it was reported on 17 April that it had been axed by ITV due to low ratings.
It remains one of Britain’s most successful shows of all time, attracting around 13 million viewers for the live grand final at the end of each series. It has one of the most memorable catchphrases in TV history: “Tonight (presenter name), I’m going to be…” and was named most popular entertainment show at the National Television Awards in 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
Kate Bush was impersonated in the show by five different performers: Linzi Hunter (1994), Ruth Armstrong (1996), Tracy Maskell (1998), Louise Halliday (2000) and Jaclyn Bell (2003). In a celebrity special in 2005, Debra Stephenson appeared as Kate Bush.
