OBT Magazine

LONDON (AFP) – Allies of singing sensation Susan Boyle rallied round Monday as it emerged she was rushed to a London clinic with exhaustion soon after a shock talent show defeat.

Boyle, whose frumpy appearance hid a soaring voice which made her a global star, was taken by ambulance to the Priory Clinic in north London Sunday, The Sun newspaper reported.

The news followed her surprise defeat Saturday in the final of the "Britain's Got Talent" television show, when she was voted into second place by the public behind urban dance troupe Diversity.

In a sign of how big the story has become, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he had spoken to the show's judges about Boyle because he "wanted to be sure that she was OK", he told ITV television Monday.

Boyle's brother Gerry told reporters at his home in Scotland that he had spoken to his sister and was assured she was feeling better.

"She's at the Priory talking to people there about how she feels and where she goes from here," the 55-year-old said.

He added: "She sounds a lot better today. She was a wee bit anxious yesterday and a bit fatigued and a bit sort of, you know, 'where's it all going and what happens now?'.

"But she sounded a bit happier, she sounded a bit more like herself, but certainly a bit more rested."

He said he expected Boyle to leave the clinic in the next couple of days, adding: "She's been on a tremendous rollercoaster. There's been an enormous amount of media speculation and intense activity. She's not used to that."

"Britain's Got Talent" judge Piers Morgan said Boyle was "essentially fine" and predicted she would bounce back for a successful career after some rest.

"I think that Susan will get back soon and get into a studio and record an album that I would imagine in the next few months is going to be one of the biggest selling albums of the year," he told Sky News television.

"That will be the real Susan Boyle fairytale."

The Priory says on its website it specialises "in the treatment of mental health problems" and is part of an exclusive chain of private clinics known for treating troubled performers including Amy Winehouse and Pete Doherty.

Police earlier confirmed officers had been called to a London hotel on Sunday evening "to doctors assessing a woman under the Mental Health Act". They did not confirm her identity in line with policy.

"The woman was taken voluntarily by ambulance to a clinic," a spokesman said.

Boyle, a 48-year-old spinster from a small town in Scotland who was starved of oxygen at birth and has mild learning difficulties, had a meteoric rise to fame in the last two months.

The church volunteer became a star around the world after footage of her singing "I Dreamed A Dream" from the musical "Les Miserables" in the "Britain's Got Talent" auditions became a YouTube hit, with at least 100 million viewings.

Bookmakers made her favourite to win the final although, in the days leading up to it, there were signs she was struggling to cope with the pressure.

Last week, she was spoken to by police after an angry outburst at her hotel, and Morgan said she had considered quitting the show.

Even though she lost, she was still reportedly poised to earn up to eight million pounds (nine million euros, 13 million dollars) in the next year from a record deal, a book about her life and even a film.

She was set to start rehearsing an album of showtunes this week and fly to Prague next month for recording sessions with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, media said.

A total of 19.2 million people watched the "Britain's Got Talent" final on live television Saturday, making it the country's most popular television programme for five years.

Boyle's friend and former voice coach Fred O'Neil said she may have been "completely overwhelmed" by the attention.

"I just hope that whatever fame that she has got out of this will eventually bring her some happiness. Obviously at the present time it is not," he told the BBC.