Britain’s Got Talent’s Ryan O’Shaughnessy unrecognisable with a beard and long hair 10 years after show appearance

HE won the hearts of the nation when he auditioned for Britain’s Got Talent in 2012 with a self-penned song about a friend he fancied.

Dubliner Ryan O’Shaughnessy was a fresh faced young 19 year-old a decade ago when he made his TV debut on the ITV smash– but he looks very different now.

His instagram profile shows the now 29 year-old sports a beard and long hair, making him unrecognisable from the boy who was scared to audition for Simon Cowell.

Still in college at the time, he said in his pre-audition interview: “I am a bit nervous about Simon and seeing what he is going to say. It’s because he is so influential.”

Ryan sang a self-penned track called No Name, which he wrote about a female friend he had romantic feelings for.

“She hasn’t heard it yet,” he told the panel, but declined to say the girl’s name on camera. “I really can’t say it,” he smiled.

The performance, where he sang accompanied by his guitar, saw Ant and Dec comment in the wings of the stage about how good it was.

And after he finished, Ryan got high praise from the judges.

“I can’t believe she won’t go out with you,” marvelled David Walliams. “It is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard…it was absolutely astonishing, well done.”

“Ryan, that was really sweet and sincere,” added Alesha Dixon.

Amanda Holden was off sick at the time due to her daughter’s traumatic birth, so Simon was the last judge to give his feedback.

“I think you have a got a brilliant sense of melody, your lyrics are superb and I love your voice,” the mogul smiled.

Three yeses later, Ryan was through to the semi finals and from there made the grand final, where he finished fifth to eventual winners Ashleigh and Pudsey.

After the show, he went on to release a self-titled album which hit the top ten, and he represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018.

He finished in 16th place on the night with 136 points.

Ryan is still based in Ireland and still performs for a living, regularly updating his 35.6k followers with videos from his gigs and selfies in the recording studio.