The Voice UK

The Voice first came to the public eye when the BBC revealed that it was exploring the possibility of acquiring the rights. However, ITV was also interested It was later revealed that The Voice would not be going head-to-head with The X Factor as Strictly Come Dancing is broadcast at the end of the year. It was said that the BBC was keen to sign up a new singing-talent show after it dropped Fame Academy in 2004 and had not revisited the genre. It was also eager to schedule a replacement for So You Think You Can Dance, which was dropped in 2011. Presenter Holly Willoughby also stated that The Voice UK is a "feel good show" saying, "The difference [with The Voice] is it's a blind audition, the coaches can't see the contestants when they come on stage so they judge them purely on their voice and their voice alone. It's really feel-good and the coaches are incredible." Devised by John de Mol, the creator of Big Brother, The Voice is based on the Dutch TV programme The Voice of Holland and is part of The Voice franchise, being based on the similar American format. Singh stated however, that this contradicted a "pledge" made by Mark Thompson, the director-general. He said, "The BBC needs to make a further significant shift towards distinctiveness, spending more of the licence fee on output which, without the BBC, wouldn't get made at all." The ITV reportedly "offered more for the format but were turned down". After comparisons to the X Factor were made, Cohen defended the decision to gain the rights to the show saying, "We feel that there's enough difference in this format that it will stand out. The fact that ITV tried very hard to get it—even though they've got The X Factor—suggests that they feel this show is different enough [from that one]." In October 2011, it was announced that Moira Ross, executive producer of Strictly Come Dancing, quit the show to join production company Wall to Wall, so that she could take the position of executive producer of The Voice UK. The BBC were planning to make each performance on the show available for download each week, with the proceeds going to charity or the downloads being free, before it is then released commercially. The winner will receive £100,000, as well as a record deal with Universal Republic. The next day, it was confirmed that it would return for a third series. In July 2013, Jessie J and Danny O'Donoghue confirmed they would not be able to return as coaches for series 3 due to their music careers and touring. In September, Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates announced they would not be returning as co-presenters for series 3. It was confirmed the same month that Kylie Minogue and Ricky Wilson would replace Jessie J and O'Donoghue. It was announced that Emma Willis and Marvin Humes would replace Willoughby and Yates as co-presenters for the third series. On 29 March 2014, the BBC confirmed the series would be returning for another two series. In April, Minogue confirmed that she would not return for the fourth series, due to clashes with her Kiss Me Once Tour. On 22 September, it was confirmed that Rita Ora would replace Minogue. In June 2015, it was announced Ora would be joining the twelfth series of The X Factor. In August 2015, it was announced that Paloma Faith would replace Ora, with Boy George replacing original coach Jones, who was let go and would not be involved in the fifth series' production. On 7 November 2015, it was announced that the fifth series of The Voice UK would be the last to air on BBC. On 23 November 2015, ITV announced they had acquired the rights to air The Voice UK for three additional series, set to begin airing in 2017. They also announced their plans to produce two additional series, The Voice Kids and an untitled ITV2 spin-off, both also set to air in 2017. The last episode aired on the BBC on 9 April 2016. The ITV2 spin-off show was axed on 8 August 2016, but it could return in the future. On 10 December 2020, ITV announced the tenth series of The Voice UK would premiere on 2 January 2021. In November 2021, only the new series of The Voice Kids was included by ITV as part of its Highlights brochure (for Christmas 2021), with the 2022 series of The Voice UK losing its Saturday night slot in January, to the Olly Murs hosted Starstruck format with Sheridan Smith, Adam Lambert, Jason Manford and Beverley Knight. Scheduling After speculation in February, the show's air date was confirmed on 10 March 2012. Of this announcement, the show's Twitter account said, "Two weeks from now, something new will be on your television, something so great you'll want to run up and kiss the screen. Just FYI." ''Britain's Got Talent was brought forward by ITV, so it could clash with the show. A BBC source said, "It is disappointing they chose to launch Britain's Got Talent'' on the same day as us. To not even meet us halfway on avoiding any sort of overlap is incredibly competitive." In an exclusive interview with Digital Spy, Cowell stated that the show is "competition" for ''Britain's Got Talent''. He said, "I recognise [The Voice] as a challenge. The BBC must be confident because they have put it up against this show. They want to make a competition out of it. So we've got to make [Britain's Got Talent] better. Everyone benefits because of that." However, presenter Reggie Yates denied this: "I don't know if this is about toppling anyone. This is a very different animal altogether. I think when you see what this show is all about, you'll see exactly where we are coming from." In 2013, the shows clashed again, this time with BGT starting in its usual mid-April Slot. Both shows went directly head to head with The Voice from 6.45-8.15 and BGT from 7-8.35. With BGT winning the war, The Voice moved to a later slot and for the rest of the run, only clashed with BGT for 10-15 minutes each week. In 2016, the shows clashed again. The Voices BBC finale was moved back a week due to a Six Nations game which meant it clashed with the BGT launch. The Voice aired from 7-9 with BGT from 7-8.25. Whilst original schedules had The Voice from 6-8 and BGT from 8-9.20, the shows both changed to a 7.00 start time. Promotion The first promotional item the BBC released was a video on the official website. It read, "Four of the biggest names in music are looking for incredible singing talent to compete for the title of The Voice UK. Only the most unique and distinctive voices will make it to the filmed auditions and get to sing for our celebrity coaches". Daily Mirror Jo Usmar commented on the promotion of the show, stating that the trailer will "get you juices flowing". A further trailer was released on 9 March, featuring footage from the show, "including interviews with the panel, a first look at some contestants and bickering between the coaches". Telegraph Hill, having previously worked on BBC Three dramas Being Human and The Fades, put in place a full-time team of "social media creatives" who will generate online videos around the show, and on the show's Facebook and Twitter pages. == Format ==

The Voice is a reality television series that features four coaches looking for a talented new artist, who could become a global superstar. The show's concept is indicated by its title: the coaches do not judge the artists by their looks, personalities, stage presence or dance routines—only their vocal ability. It is this aspect that differentiates The Voice from other reality television series such as The X Factor, ''Britain's Got Talent or even Pop Idol. The competitors are split into four teams, which are mentored by the coaches who in turn choose songs for their artists to perform. There is no specific age range and anyone can audition; if a coach likes what they hear, a button-press allows their chair to spin around and face the performer, signifying that they would like to mentor them. If more than one does so, then the artist selects a coach. However, if no coach turns around then the artist is sent home. The Voice'' has been referred to as a "big, exciting and warm-hearted series"and a "new generation in its genre". The discomfort caused by the poor design of the chair, which weighs 19-stone, has drawn criticism from will.i.am, who claims that it makes him hunch his shoulders. There are five different stages: producers' auditions, Blind auditions, Battle phase, Knockout stage and live shows. Producers' auditions and blind auditions The Voice UKs first stage is the producers' auditions, which are not shown on television. The first shown stage is the blind auditions, where they sing in front of the coaches. The coaches have their backs to the singer, and if they like what they hear, they can press their button to turn around and recruit them to their team. If more than one coach turns, the power shifts to the singer, who then decides which team they would like to be part of. Each coach must recruit a number of singers (10 in series 1, 12 from series 2 to series 5 and 10 since series 6 onwards) to their team in the blind auditions to progress on to the battle phase. Since 2017, artists that are not selected by any of the coaches leave the stage after their song and do not talk with the coaches. Equally, the chairs do not turn and hence the coaches do not see any of the artists that are not picked. Starting also in series 10, "Block" buttons were added, which prevents one coach to recruit artist on its team. Each coach is given only one block in the entire auditions. The block buttons were removed from series 12 (2023). Battle phase The second stage, 'Battle phase', is where two artists are mentored and then developed by their respective coach. In Series 4 (2015), a second steal was added, thus increasing the progressing team to eight members. In Series 6 (2017), each coach only had one steal each. From series 11–13 (2022–2024) the battles were axed in favour of the callbacks. They were added back in series 14 (2026). Knockout stage The third stage of the competition is the 'Knockout stage'. It was first introduced in the second series (2013). The four coaches will enter this stage with seven team members each; six winners of the battle phase, and one stolen member. Artists perform a 'killer song' of their choosing and the coaches each pick three members of their team to go through to the live shows, creating a final 12 for the public vote. This meant that 9 acts would take part in the live shows. From series 10 (2021), the knockout round has been axed. Callbacks The second stage of the competition is the 'Callbacks'. It was first introduced in the eleventh series (2022). The four coaches are all assisted by guest mentors to help make their decisions. They all have their ten acts from the 'Blind Auditions'. From here, the artists are put into a group of three or four where they will all take individual turns to perform the same song - given to them by their coach. After all the other artists perform, they come together & their coach then picks 3 artists from other groups to advance to the semi-final, leaving each coach with 3 semi-finalists. In total, 12 artists advance to the semi-final, eliminating 28 acts during the process. For the 2026 series, the callbacks have been axed in favour of the battles. Live shows In the 'Live shows' artists perform in front of the coaches and audience, broadcast live, with the current exceptions being the 2020 and 2022–2026 series, which were pre-recorded. In the first series (2012), each coach had five artists in their team to begin with and the artists went head-to-head to win public votes. The votes determined which artists advanced to the final eight. The final eight artists competed in a live broadcast. However, the coaches had a 50/50 say with the audience and the public in deciding which artists moved on to the 'final four' phase. In the first three series, each coach had one member who continued. However, from the fourth series in 2015, the semi-final format changes; only public votes decide which artists move on to the final, regardless of their team. Therefore, a coach may have two of his/her artists in the final. The final (the winner round) was decided upon by the public vote. Throughout the final the coaches frequently performed with their artists. The winner was crowned The Voice. From the second series (2013), after the introduction of the 'steal' in the battle phase and the new 'knockout stage', each coach will have three artists on their team a total of 12 artists in the live shows to fight for the public vote and to be crowned 'The Voice', subsequently receiving a record deal with Universal Music. From the tenth series (2021) This has changed 3 contestants from each team perform fortnightly and only 2 of them from each team will be facing the public vote and one of their coaches will reveal the contestant with the most public votes to go to the live final. From the eleventh series (2022) each coach has 3 acts in the semi-final. Each coach must select one from their team to advance to the final, eliminating the other 2. In the final, the studio audience votes for the winner, which will receive the record deal with Universal Music. From the twelfth series (2023) In the final, the winner with the most votes received a £50,000 cash prize and a luxury holiday to Mauritius. ==Series overview==

To date, thirteen series have been broadcast, as shown below. Warning: the following table presents a significant amount of different colours. ==Spin-offs==

Louder on Two Starting on 24 March 2014, a new spin-off series aired on BBC Two during the live shows every weekday night. The series is hosted by Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two presenter Zoe Ball, and features interviews with the coaches and contestants as well as providing live acoustic performances by the artists. The show did not return in 2015, for the fourth series of the main show. The V Room An online spin-off show titled The V Room was announced in October 2016, with Cel Spellman presenting. The show started after the live shows in March 2017. Spellman did not return for series 7 in 2018, and was replaced by previous runner–up Jamie Miller. The show is available on-demand via the ITVX and features exclusive content across social media sites and the show's mobile app. The show started after the live shows in March 2018. On 12 March 2018, Vick Hope took over for Jamie Miller as the show's new digital reporter. == Presenters ==

The Voice UK was presented by Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates during the first two series. In 2014, both stepped down from their roles and were replaced by Big Brother UK presenter Emma Willis and JLS band member Marvin Humes. Willoughby (series 1 and 2) and Willis (series 3 onwards) are the main presenters for the live shows, whilst Yates (series 1 and 2) and Humes (series 3 to 6) interview the contestants after their performances and are also social media correspondents. In June 2016, ITV confirmed that Willis would return to host the series, but would not be joined by Humes. Timeline Key : Main presenter : Backstage presenter : Contestant } == Coaches ==

The coaching line-up was announced on 8 December 2011. Presenter Holly Willoughby described them as "badass" and "incredible". All four coaches confirmed they would return as coaches for a second series. Kylie Minogue and Ricky Wilson joined will.i.am and Tom Jones as coaches for the third series following the departures of Jessie J and O'Donoghue. Later on, Rita Ora replaced Minogue for the fourth series. After only one series, Ora left the show, due to touring commitments and joined rival show, The X Factor UK. On 14 August, it was announced that Paloma Faith and Boy George would join Wilson and will.i.am for the fifth series, meaning that Jones would not return. Jones' axe had a widespread negative response from viewers and by Jones himself, with Jones claiming that he had no idea he had been axed. On 13 November 2015, Wilson announced that the fifth series would be his last as a coach. However, on 24 March 2016, it was announced that he could make a return to the show. The following month, after just one series on the show, Faith stated that she had left due to her pregnancy. In July 2016, it was confirmed that Boy George had decided not to return for the sixth series on ITV. will.i.am later revealed that he would return as a coach for the 2017 series, but Wilson later announced that he would not. In September 2016, the coaches for the 2017 series was confirmed as will.i.am, Jennifer Hudson, Sir Tom Jones and Gavin Rossdale. On 6 March 2017, ITV confirmed that will.i.am. would return to the series in 2018. The network also expressed that "all parties" were interested in Jones' return, as well. In October 2017, it was announced that Jones and Hudson would return, alongside singer Olly Murs joining the coaching panel, replacing Rossdale. On 21 September 2018, the Daily Express announced that will.i.am, Jones, Hudson and Murs would all return to the show as coaches for the eighth series. In September 2019, it was announced that Meghan Trainor would replace a departing Hudson, who cited work commitments in the United States as the reason for her departure; Jones, Murs and will.i.am were announced to be returning alongside Trainor. On 8 October 2020, Trainor announced that she would not be returning for the tenth series, after announcing her pregnancy. English singer-songwriter Anne-Marie would replace Trainor in 2021. All four coaches returned for the eleventh and twelfth series. On 22 September 2023, Murs announced that he would not be returning for the thirteenth series of the show after being axed. On 29 October 2023, it was also revealed that Anne-Marie had been axed, to refresh the judging panel. On 21 February 2024, it was announced that will.i.am and Jones would be joined by LeAnn Rimes and McFly band members Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones, with the latter being a coach on the kids version, as the first duo coach on the series. On 3 May 2025, it was announced that Rimes would leave the show while will.i.am, Jones and McFly would return for the fourteenth series. On 3 June 2025, former The Voice Australia coach Kelly Rowland was announced as Rimes' replacement. Timeline } Line-up of coaches Gallery File:Will.i.am at the 2023 World Economic Forum (52693572913) (cropped).jpg|will.i.am(1–) File:Jessie J 2, 2012.jpg|Jessie J(1–2) File:Sir Tom Jones at The Queen's Birthday Party (cropped-2).jpg|Sir Tom Jones(1–4, 6–) File:Danny The Script en Barcelona.jpg|Danny O'Donoghue(1–2) File:Kylie Minogue at The Queen's Birthday Party (cropped 2).jpg|Kylie Minogue(3) File:Kaiser Chiefs-Rock im Park 2014 by 2eight 3SC9237.jpg|Ricky Wilson(3–5) File:Rita Ora 2012.jpg|Rita Ora(4) File:Glaston2024 2806 300624 (6 of 173) (53837667576) (cropped).jpg|Paloma Faith(5) File:Boy George by Dean Stockings.jpg|Boy George(5) File:Jennifer Hudson 2011 AA (cropped).jpg|Jennifer Hudson(6–8) File:Gavin Rossdale of Bush at top of his game at Frequency Festival in Austria (7829248436).jpg|Gavin Rossdale(6) File:Olly Murs Sommarkrysset 2012 By Daniel Åhs Karlsson.jpg|Olly Murs(7–12) File:Meghan Trainor in 2024 (cropped).jpg|Meghan Trainor(9) File:Anne-Marie-4250 (cropped).jpg|Anne-Marie(10–12) File:LeAnn Rimes at Mentor Rocks (1) (cropped) (cropped).jpg|LeAnn Rimes(13) File:Glastonbury2022 (373 of 413) (52182893475) (cropped).jpg|Tom Fletcher & Danny Jones(13–) Kelly Rowland 11, 2012.jpg |Kelly Rowland (upcoming in season 14) == Coaches' teams and their artists ==

In each series, each coach chooses a number of acts to progress to the live shows. This table shows, for each series, which artists he or she put through to the live shows. In each series, artists advance to the final week of the live shows, either by team-based (in the first three series) or entirely by public voting (since series four). Key : - Winner : - Runner-up : - Third place : - Fourth place } == Coaches' advisors ==

From the first series through the third series, and again from the eleventh series, the coaches worked with an advisor/two advisors in the battles/callbacks. will.i.am used an AI mentor, named Fyilicia, as his advisor in the thirteenth season. == Reception ==

The first series became BBC One's biggest new entertainment series on record with a consolidated series average of 9.2million/38.5% share. Across all episodes, including results shows, The Voice UK averaged 8.54m/36.3%. From series 3 onwards, the show was moved to a January start to avoid clashes with ''Britain's Got Talent''. This paid off as the 3rd series averaged a much higher viewership of 8.1m/31.6% and series 4 went on to average 8.55m/34.8% making it the most watched series to date. ==International broadcast==

On 23 December 2016, Irish commercial broadcaster TV3 announced that The Voice UK would be shown on the channel, after RTÉ One cancelled The Voice of Ireland in favour of Dancing with the Stars. ==Contestant discography==