Operatunity knocks

One was a tree surgeon and an undertaker; another a law student and a third had not sung in five years.

But they all have one thing in common - a desire to become a professional opera singer and perform at the London Coliseum, home of the English National Opera (ENO).

Now a new reality television show is giving them the chance to do just that. These five hopefuls are among the 100 contestants who will appear in Operatunity - the opera equivalent of Pop Stars - which begins on Channel 4 next week.

They have already seen off 2,400 entrants who submitted applications last January; the judges spent weeks sifting through tapes of naked men singing in the shower and women trilling off-key.

In the first programme, the lucky 100 will sing to a panel of opera professionals led by Anthony Legge, head of music at ENO. He said: "I think the ideal thing for any singer is that they go straight to your heart, and that your brain stops working. You just give in. That's what I'm looking for."

The panel will pick 20 to go through to the second programme in which they will be whittled down again to six.

The six will get the chance to perform as an ensemble in full costume, then, after a series of demanding vocal lessons and auditions, the winner will be chosen.

The victor's appearance in Rigoletto, alongside many world-class performers, will be broadcast on 2 March.

Among those hoping they will be the one is John Foley, who said the process is "a bit like Billy Elliot". The former tree surgeon and undertaker said of opera singing: "When I was a teenager, people thought it was a bit girly."