A gifted performer from Dunmow got the chance of a lifetime last weekend (January 7), when he appeared on BBC1 as part of a new talent competition.

Nick Carsberg, 17, was a contestant on the first episode of Let it Shine, a musical audition series where the winner will be a one of five lead roles in a Take That musical.

All of the judges – Amber Riley, Martin Kemp, Dannii Minogue, and Gary Barlow – give people a mark out of five.

For every point, stars line the stage, and if the performer gets enough to reach where they stand, they are through to the next round.

It is presented by Graham Norton and Mel Giedroyc, from The Great British Bake-Off.

Nick sung Dance With Me Tonight by Olly Murs and got 16 stars, four from each judge, which is one more than he needed to go through.

When judging his performance, former Take That member Gary Barlow asked if his name was “Carsberg, or Carlsberg, because if Carlsberg made boy band members”, before trailing off – referring to the lager ad campaign that claimed if Carlsberg did anything, it would be the best.

Amber Riley was slightly more reserved, although complimentary: “You did really good job.

“The vocals could be stronger, you definitely need to work on that, but the performance – you have it.”

After hearing the scores, Nick said: “It’s amazing, I’m so happy, thank you so much.”

Nick, who now works as an apprentice restoring classic cars, has been learning to perform at the Dunmow Arts Centre since he was nine-years-old.

Jacky Rom, a director at the centre, said: “We have been training Nick for over ten years so we have seen him grow into a wonderful performer and we are so excited to see his progress.”

The next episode is at 7pm on January 14 on BBC1.