MUSA MAKES MAGIC

He wowed the judges on Britain's Got Talent and now this disabled dancer wants to open doors for others like him 

-  NOKUTHULA ZWANE-EJIKE

MR NASTY may have softened somewhat over the years - fatherhood has mellowed his mean streak and helped him to smile more. But it still takes a special person doing something amazing to bring a tear to Simon Cowell's eye and a look of unbridled wonder and admiration to his face.

And Musa Motha managed to do just that. The young man from Sebokeng not only blew Simon and his fellow Britain's Got Talent (BGT) judges away, he also became a viral sensation, his name on the lips of millions of people around the world.

His performance on the talent competition's stage was a mixture of skill, grace, practice and courage. Dancing in front of beady-eyed judges, an auditorium full of people and a viewership around the world is daunting at the best of times. But when you have only one leg the stakes are far higher.

One slip of a crutch, one wrong move, one wobble or one misstep could've brought everything to a crashing halt. But Musa (27) didn't falter and there was barely a dry eye in the room by the time his powerful performance drew to a close.

Simon prompted the other judges, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and Bruno Tonioli to send him straight through to the finals because he'd never seen an audience react in such a way.

Sadly, Musa didn't win the competition outright that accolade went to Norwegian comedian Viggo Venn - but he was philosophical about it.