'impression' NEIL DIAMOND sound-a-like Jim Guest was left red faced after he claims a live family TV talent show "took the mickey" and made him sound like Donald Duck. The local singer says he was disgusted by his treatment alongside other Bolton hopefuls, including a woman who left the stage in tears, on a live Showstoppers show for Cable & Wireless. The show, broadcast on Channel 25 on May 7, was filmed in Oldham as eight artistes gathered to compete in a talent contest live on air.

Jim, aged 42, was hoping to use the show as a springboard to fame in his attempts to turn professional.

But Jim, of Sundridge Close, Bolton, claimed: "I was made to feel like a clown.

"Despite a sound check before the performance, the sound levels were awful. I was made to sound like Donald Duck.

"The audience of 700 turned out to be an audience of 600 children.

"And 10 seconds before the end of each act, the host, Steve Johnson, 'gonged-off' the artist and set off a firework. One Bolton woman left the stage in tears.

"The TV host was on stage all the time taking the mickey. It was humiliating."

After being contacted by the Bolton Evening News, production company for the Showstoppers, Communicopia, have invited Jim to take up a three minute TV slot on their IQ & Brew programme networked on May 28. Jan Morley from Communicopia said: "We understand that this is upsetting to him particularly when he is trying to launch his own business.

"We will try too make it up to him by offering him his own slot on IQ &Brew. There'll be no gongs or bongs. It is a tough world in television but the aim of the programme is not to publicly humiliate.

"It is a community programme and we want to reflect the feelings of that community." Jim was among local people who auditioned to go on the Showstoppers at the Irish pub O'Leary's in Bolton three weeks ago.

Jim, who paid £200 for his sequined outfit for the show which he said was strongly ridiculed, said: "I don't want people to think this is sour grapes. I want people in Bolton to be warned about this set up.

"I have no conflict with the production company. My conflict is with the host employed by the company who was very unprofessional."

Jim added: "It has really knocked my confidence but Bolton people have been great. They say, they've heard me sing and know that the performance on the show was not really me."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.