document_title: Britain's Got Talent

question_text: when does britain's got talent start 2013

question_tokens: when does britain 's got talent start 2013

text: Britain's Got Talent

text: History[edit]

text: The show's format was devised by X Factor creator and Sony Music executive, Simon Cowell, who was involved in the creation of other Got Talent programmes across several different countries. To showcase his idea, a pilot episode was filmed in September 2005, with the judging panel consisting of Cowell, Fern Britton (at the time, presenter of This Morning), as well as tabloid journalist Piers Morgan.[5] The pilot was not broadcast on television until it was shown as part of a documentary series entitled The Talent Show Story in January 2012.[5]

text: The original plan for the show was for it be aired within 2005-06, before the broadcast of America's Got Talent, with Paul O'Grady presenting the programme under the title Paul O'Grady's Got Talent, after having hosted the pilot, with his selection as host due to the popularity he was attaining from his teatime chat show, The Paul O'Grady Show.[6] However, complication arose when O'Grady was involved in a row with ITV and refused to appear on another show of the broadcaster, eventually defecting to Channel 4 to continue hosting his teatime show, effectively putting plans for the programme on hold.[7] In a 2010 interview, O'Grady commented about the row by stating:[8]

text: "I did the pilot for Britain's Got Talent – which was originally going to be called Paul O'Grady's Got Talent. But I told the producers they were having a joke if they thought I would front a show with that title. The original panel of judges was going to be Simon Cowell, Fern Britton and Piers Morgan. I was the host. Then when I had the row with ITV I was banned from the studios. I remember I rang Simon and told him he had a huge hit on his hands, but there was no way I could do it. I said, if I am banned I have to be banned from everything. I can’t be a hypocrite and come in and do this. I had to bow out."

text: On 12 February 2007, following the success of America's Got Talent the previous year, ITV announced their intentions for a British series of Got Talent. Their announcement revealed changes to the original plan for the programme, with Ant & Dec revealed to be the hosts for the new programme. While Cowell remained as part of the judging panel, the new plan intended for David Hasselhoff and Cheryl Cole. However, both resigned before the programme was due to air, leading to Morgan being part of the panel as originally planned, and actress Amanda Holden joining him and Cowell as a judge; Hasselhoff would later join the panel for the programme's fifth series after being a part of the panel for America's Got Talent, while Cowell later employed Cole to be a replacement for Sharon Osbourne on The X Factor. At the same time, the broadcaster also announced that the show would be accompanied by a sister show on ITV2, entitled Britain's Got More Talent, with Stephen Mulhern as its presenter.

text: Format[edit]

text: Auditions[edit]

text: The show holds two auditions for contestants. The first is an open audition held across several different cities across the UK during the Autumn months while the second, referred to as the "Judge's Auditions", is held the following year during January and February, prior to the broadcast of the show during spring or early summer, and consists of the contestants who made it through the open auditions. It is held within a select set of cities, which has commonly included Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham and London. For the Judge's Auditions, each site used for these is located within a theatre or convention hall. These sites are primarily chosen for the purpose of having facilities that can handle large volumes of contestants, with each set up into three arrangements when auditions are taking place: a waiting area for contestants to prepare and await their turn to perform, with monitors to allow them to see the performances of other contestants; the wings, where a contestant enters and leaves from, and where friends and family of the contestant can view them from; and the main stage, where the contestant performs their act before the judging panel, who are located in front of the stage. The main stage area is usually modified to include the judge's panel desk, along with a special lighting rig above the stage, consisting of Xs that each have the name of a judge under them.

text: Each contestant that auditions is given a number by the production team and remains in the waiting area until called out into the wings, giving them a certain amount of time to prepare their act. Upon being allowed onto the main stage, they will usually be asked by one of the judges for their name and what they plan to perform, along with other details such as age, occupation, personal background, and what they wish to achieve if they won. After this, they are then given three minutes to conduct their performance before both the judges and a live audience, with some acts being supported by a backing track provided by the production team. If at any time, the judges find the performance to be unconvincing, boring or completely wrong, they may use the buzzer before them, which changes the Xs from white to red; if all the judges press their buzzers, then the performance is immediately over. However, a judge can retract their buzzer's use if they felt they had done so prematurely before witnessing a contest's performance to the end; this is true if the performance appears to look bad, but later turns out to have been good in their eyes.

text: Once a performance is over, each judge will give an overview of what they thought about the act, before casting a vote. If the contestant(s) receives a majority vote of "Yes", they then proceed onto the next stage in the contest, otherwise they are eliminated from that series' contest. In Series 8, a new feature was added to the auditions, which had been previously used on Germany's Got Talent, called the "Golden Buzzer".[9] Situated in the centre of the judge's desk, the Golden Buzzer allows a judge to effectively send the contestant(s) into the live semi-finals, regardless of the opinions of the other judges, if they felt that a contestant's performance was outstanding; when pressed, the judge's X turns gold and the stage is showered in gold glitter strips. However, as a general rule, they may only press it once per series and cannot press it again in later auditions. While the hosts of Britain's Got Talent may also press the Golden Buzzer for a contestant, they may only press it once themselves in the same manner.[10][11]

text: Filming for the show begins during the Judge's Auditions, with footage that is recorded in these being edited into a series of episodes that are aired on a weekly schedule before the live semi-finals, and featuring the best highlights of the auditions, including those from the best performances the judges saw, to the worst that appeared, whether funny, poorly conceived or generally bad, and in some cases totally inappropriate. These episodes also include interviews with the contestants in a separate area, as well as additional interviews conducted within the wings before and after a performance, that are conducted by the hosts, who also give personal comments about a performance while watching from the wings.

text: Judges' Decisions[edit]

text: This stage takes place after the auditions have been completed, and is also referred to as Deliberation Day, in which the judges look through the acts that have successfully made it to this stage, and begin whittling them down to those who would stand a fair chance in the live semi-finals. The amount that goes through has varied over the show's history, though usually consists of a number that can be divided equally over the semi-finals being held in a series. Once the judges have decided on who will go through, all contestants that have reached this stage are called back to discover if they will progress into the live semi-finals or not. After this has been done, the acts are divided up between the semi-finals that the series will have; usually eight in each series, except for the sixth to tenth series which had nine acts per semi-final.

text: For the fifth series, some acts were asked to perform again, as the judges had had difficulty coming to a final decision on the semi-finalist, and thus needed to see their performance again in order to make up their minds; it is only time in the show's history that this has happened, and has not been repeated since.[12]

text: Semi-finals & Final[edit]

text: Contestants that make it into the semi-finals by making it through the auditions and being chosen by the judges (or, from series 8, received the Golden Buzzer during their audition), perform once more before an audience and the judges, with their performance broadcast on live television. Until the tenth series, live episodes were broadcast from The Fountain Studios in Wembley, the same site used for The X Factor, but following its closure in 2016,[13] the show relocated its live episodes to Elstree Studios. Like the Audition stage of the contest, each semi-finalist must attempt to impress by primarily conducting a new routine of their act within the same span of time; the judges can still use a buzzer if they are displeased with a performance and can end it early if all the buzzers are used, along with giving a personal opinion about an act when the performance is over. Of the semi-finalists that take part, only two can progress into the final, which is determined by two different types of votes - a public phone vote, and a judges' vote.

text: The phone vote, which occurs after all the semi-finalists have performed, determines the first winner of the semi-final, and takes place via a special phone line over a short break from the programme. During this time, the public votes for the act they liked best, through a phone number in which the final two digits are different for each semi-finalist - these digits are primarily arranged by the order of their appearance. Once the lines have closed and the votes have been counted, the programme airs a live results episode, in which the semi-finalist with the highest number of votes automatically moves into the final. The second winner is determined by the judges' vote, which held after the results of the phone vote have been given out, and determines whether the second or third most popular semi-finalist in the public vote moves on to the final. The judges' vote, held after the result of the phone vote, determines the second act that wins this stage, and is conducted between the second and third most popular acts the public voted on. After the number of judges was increased to four, the rule on the judges' vote was modified - if the vote is tied, the semi-finalist with the second highest tally of public votes automatically moves on to the final. In the eleventh series, the judges' vote was dropped from the show's format, meaning that the semi-finalists with the highest and second-highest tally of votes, moved on to the final.

text: From the sixth series onwards, the show introduced a new format known as the "Judges' Wildcard", in which the judges were given the power to reinstate an act that had been eliminated from the semi-final, their choice determined by a private vote conducted before the airing of the final. This format was later expanded to include a "Public Wildcard", in which the public could vote on an act that had been eliminated in the semi-finals during the judges' vote and reinstate it for the final; although used in the ninth and tenth series, this format was dropped for the eleventh series.

text: For the final of each series, the format of the contest operated in exactly the same manner as the semi-finals, including being broadcast live on television, though this time the winner is determined purely by a phone vote, with the finalists attempting to secure more votes than the others by performing a new routine at their best. Upon the result being given, the top two acts are brought onto the stage, with the hosts announcing which of them received the most votes. The winner of each year's contest receives a cash prize, and earns the opportunity to perform in the Royal Variety Performance later that year.

text: For the show's scheduling, the live episodes are usually arranged to take place over the course of a week, with the semi-finals aired mainly on weekdays, and the final aired on the weekend; in some series, the schedule featured a break between the live episodes of the semi-finals, due to coverage of live events. All live episodes are divided into two parts when they are aired - the first half focuses on performances, each beginning with a short clip of the semi-finalist/finalist's background, and ending with comments by the judges; the second half occurs after voting is closed, usually after another programme has aired between the two parts, and focuses on the results of the phone vote, with a guest performance taking place prior to the announcement of the results. This format was initially used for the live finals only, up until the start of the semi-finals in the fourth series.

text: Judges[edit]

text: For the first four series after the show began in June 2007, the judging panel consisted of music executive and television producer Simon Cowell, television and West End star Amanda Holden, and newspaper editor and journalist Piers Morgan. When the third series was starting in 2009, it was announced that Kelly Brook would be joining as a fourth judge in the panel,[14] but this later dropped less than a week later by the producers, who believed at the time that the format would be "too complicated" with four judges, thus leaving the panel consisting of just three judges; Brook was later credited as a guest judge.[15][16][17] In 2010, Cowell fell ill during filming of the fourth series and was unable to attend the Birmingham auditions, leading to fellow The X Factor judge Louis Walsh stepping in as guest judge in his place, until he had recovered.[18]

text: In 2011, Morgan revealed he was leaving the show to travel to America and begin filming of his new show, with Cowell announcing that, although he would attend the live episodes of the fifth series, he wouldn't be present for the auditions, due to his busy schedule with launching The X Factor USA.[19] The show's producers decided therefore to have Holden act as the head judge in the auditions until Cowell returned, while also having comedian Michael McIntyre, and actor, singer and former America's Got Talent judge David Hasselhoff, join the fifth series and oversee the auditions,[20][21] although Walsh had to be brought in again as a guest judge for the London auditions, due to Hasselhoff's commitments with a pantomime; both judges remained on the panel for the live shows, with Cowell becoming a fourth judge upon his return. After their appearance, it was announced later that year in October, that neither Hasselhoff nor McIntyre would be returning as a judge for the sixth series, after Cowell returned full-time.[22]

text: On 2 January 2012, the producers revealed its decision to adopt the use of a fourth judge for the programme, after it announced that both Cowell and Holden would now be joined by David Walliams and Alesha Dixon in the sixth series, with the latter moving to the talent show after deciding to leave BBC's Strictly Come Dancing.[23] During filming in February, Holden was unable to attend the London auditions, due to having given birth to her daughter and suffering some after effects from her pregnancy, leading to actress and model Carmen Electra stepping in as a guest judge until she recovered. In subsequent series, the line-up remained as Cowell, Holden, Walliams and Dixon, with no further incidents except for the eighth series in 2014 - Cowell missed the first day of the Manchester auditions, leading to Ant & Dec filling in for him, and was also absent for the final day of the London auditions - and the tenth series in 2016 - Cowell was late for an audition, and was temporarily replaced by Walliam's mother Kathleen, who was attending it.

text:
Series
Main Judge
Guest Judge

1
2
3
4

1
Simon
Amanda
Piers
N/A
N/A

2

3
Kelly1

4
Louis2

5
Michael
David H.

6
Alesha
David W.
Carmen3

7
N/A

8
Ant & Dec4

9
N/A

10
Kathleen5

11
N/A

12
N/A

text:
^ Brook was credited as a guest judge for the Manchester auditions, after the producers dropped plans for her to be a permanent judge in this series.
^ Walsh served as a guest judge in place of Cowell during the fourth series, and Hasselhoff during the fifth series.
^ Electra served as a guest judge in place of Holden, during the sixth series.
^ Ant & Dec served as guest judges in the eighth series, substituting for Cowell on the first day of the Manchester auditions.
^ David Walliams' mother, Kathleen Williams, served as a guest judge in place of Cowell, while attending a session in the tenth series.

tag: ol

text: Series overview[edit]

text:
Series
Start
Finish
Winner's prize1
Winner
Runner-up
Third place

1
9 June 2007
17 June 2007
£100,000
Paul Potts
Connie Talbot
Damon Scott

2
12 April 2008
31 May 2008
George Sampson
Signature
Andrew Johnston

3
11 April 2009
30 May 2009
Diversity
Susan Boyle
Julian Smith

4
17 April 2010
5 June 2010
Spelbound
Twist and Pulse
Kieran Gaffney

5
16 April 2011
4 June 2011
Jai McDowall
Ronan Parke
New Bounce

6
24 March 2012
12 May 2012
£500,000
Ashleigh and Pudsey
Jonathan and Charlotte
Only Boys Aloud

7
13 April 2013
8 June 2013
£250,000
Attraction
Jack Carroll
Richard & Adam

8
12 April 2014
7 June 2014
Collabro
Lucy Kay
Bars & Melody

9
11 April 2015
31 May 2015
Jules O'Dwyer & Matisse
Jamie Raven
Côr Glanaethwy

10
9 April 2016
28 May 2016
Richard Jones
Wayne Woodward
Boogie Storm

11
15 April 2017
3 June 2017
Tokio Myers
Issy Simpson
Daliso Chaponda

12
14 April 2018
June 2018
TBA
TBA
TBA

text: ^ In addition to the cash prize, winners also earn the opportunity to perform at the Royal Variety Performance in the year they win.

text: Series 1 (2007)[edit]

text: The first series was aired during 2007, between 9–17 June. Auditions for this series took place within the cities of Manchester, Birmingham, London and Cardiff, between January and February earlier that year. The series had 3 live semi-finals, featuring a total of 24 semi-finalists, all of whom were vying for a chance to perform at the Royal Variety Performance, as well as claiming a £100,000 cash prize. The series was won by opera singer Paul Potts; the results of the other finalists were not announced.

text: Series 2 (2008)[edit]

text: The second series was aired during 2008, between 12 April to 31 May, and featured notable differences. Not only did the series run for much longer, auditions took place in Blackpool and Glasgow, the latter following complaints that Scotland hadn't been visited during the previous series, along with Manchester, Birmingham, London and Cardiff. In addition, the show had five live semi-finals, featuring a total of 40 semi-finalists. The series was won by street-dancer George Sampson, with dual dance group Signature coming in second, and singer Andrew Johnston placing third.

text: Series 3 (2009)[edit]

text: The third series was aired during 2009, between 11 April to 30 May, with auditions held in the same five cities as before. Initially, the producers intended to change the format by including a fourth judge on the panel, but this was later dropped a few days after auditions began. The series was won by dance troupe Diversity, with singer Susan Boyle coming in second, and saxophonist Julian Smith placing third.

text: Series 4 (2010)[edit]

text: The fourth series was aired during 2010, between 17 April to 5 June; a single episode of this series, intended for airing on 22 May, was pushed back to 23 May, in order to avoid it clashing with live coverage of the UEFA Champions League Final that year. The auditions were once more held across the same five cities as before, though the series also held auditions with Newcastle upon Tyne; the city had been originally planned to hold auditions for the previous series, but these were cancelled before this could happen. Owing to illness, Cowell was unable to attend the Birmingham auditions, which led to Louis Walsh being in brought in as a guest judge for these.[24] The series was won by gymnastic troupe Spelbound, with dancing duo Twist and Pulse coming in second, and drummer Kieran Gaffney placing third.

text: Series 5 (2011)[edit]

text: The fifth series was aired during 2011, between 16 April to 4 June, and was the first to be broadcast completely in high-definition; like before, a single episode intended for airing on 28 May, was pushed back to 29 May, to avoid it clashing with live coverage of the UEFA Champions League Final that year. Auditions took place across the same five cities, though also included Liverpool. This series saw a change in the judging panel, following Piers Morgan's departure from the show,[25] with Holden joined by David Hasselhoff and Michael McIntyre during the auditions; Cowell appeared during the live episodes of the series with the rest of the panel,[26][27] while Louis Walsh returned as a guest judge for the London auditions when Hasselhoof couldn't attend due to other commitments at the time.[28] The series was won by singer Jai McDowall, with singer Ronan Parke coming in second, and boyband New Bounce placing third.

text: Series 6 (2012)[edit]

text: The sixth series was aired during 2012, between 24 March and 12 May. For this series, the cash prize was increased from £100,000 to £500,000, and a new feature was introduced called the "Wildcard", in which the judges could select one of the acts eliminated in the semi-finals, to return and compete in the finals. The show also increased the number of semi-finalist for the semi-finals to 45, with nine acts per semi-final, and the number of judges for the entire contest to 4; the previous series also featured four judges, albeit for the live episodes only. In addition, the show attempted to bring in a new way of voting for the semi-finals via a mobile app, but this was suspended for the series after it suffered technical problems during the first live semi-final.

text: This series featured an open audition in London, along with inviting other acts to audition via YouTube, before holding Judge's Auditions within Birmingham, London, Manchester and Cardiff, Blackpool and Edinburgh. As both McIntyre and Hasselhoff announced in late 2011 they wouldn't be returning,[22] the show announced on 2 January 2012 that they would be replaced by David Walliams and Alesha Dixon,[29] and join both Holden and Cowell for the new series, the latter having announced he would be returning as a full-time judge on the show.[30][31] Holden was unable to attend some of the auditions due to her pregnancy that year, leading to Carmen Electra stepping in as a guest judge for these. The series was won by trainer and dog duo Ashleigh and Pudsey, with opera duo Jonathan and Charlotte coming in second, and Welsh boys choir Only Boys Aloud placing third.

text: Series 7 (2013)[edit]

text: The seventh series was aired during 2013, between 13 April to 8 June; the show took a break on the 29 May, due to live football coverage of England's friendly with the Republic of Ireland. While the show retained the new features introduced in the previous series, the cash prize was reduced to £250,000, with the series featuring auditions within five cities - Birmingham, London, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester. The series was won by shadow theatre troupe Attraction, with comedian Jack Carroll coming in second, and opera duo Richard & Adam placing third.

text: Series 8 (2014)[edit]

text: The eighth series aired during 2014, between 12 April to 7 June. This series was the first to introduce the "Golden Buzzer", and for the first time since the second series, auditions were not held in Scotland, instead being held in Northern Ireland within Belfast, along with Cardiff, London, Birmingham and Manchester; Edinburgh joined these cities to hold open auditions in late 2013, along with Blackpool and Brighton, with additional open auditions held in various local branches of Morrisons within "Talent Spot" tents, owing to the show's sponsorship deal with the supermarket chain at the time. The series was won by boy band Collabro, with opera singer Lucy Kay coming in second, and rapper duo Bars & Melody placing third.

text: Series 9 (2015)[edit]

text: The ninth series was aired during 2015, between 11 April to 31 May. This series saw the "Wildcard" feature updated; along with the judges being able to put forth an eliminated act from the semi-finals into the final (referred to as the Judges' Wildcard), the show now also allowed the public to vote between the three most popular eliminated acts, with the one with the highest number of votes going forward into the final - this act is referred to as the Public Wildcard. Audition took place within Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham, and London, with the latter three cities holding open auditions in late 2014 along with Newcastle, Cardiff, Portsmouth, Leeds, Norwich, and Bristol. The winner of the series was trainer and dog duo Jules O'Dwyer & Matisse, with magician Jamie Raven coming second, and Welsh choir Côr Glanaethwy placing third.

text: Series 10 (2016)[edit]

text: The tenth series was aired during 2016, between 9 April to 28 May. Auditions were held within Liverpool, Birmingham and London, with all three holding open auditions in late 2015 along with Cardiff, Glasgow, and Manchester. It was the last series to hold live episodes within The Fountain Studios, before its closure at the end of the year. The series was won by magician Richard Jones, with singer Wayne Woodward coming in second, and dance group Boogie Storm placing third.

text: Series 11 (2017)[edit]

text: The eleventh series was aired during 2017, between 15 April to 3 June; the final was originally planned for 4 June, but this was moved forward to avoid it clashing with the One Love Manchester benefit concert that day.[32] The series saw two major changes: the first saw the total number of semi-finalist reduced to 40 with eight per each semi-final, as it had been prior to the sixth series; the second saw the Judges' vote being dropped, with the two semi-finalists with the highest number of public votes moving on into the final. In addition, the live episodes were now broadcast from Elstree Studios, owing to the closure of the previous site. Auditions were held within Salford, Birmingham, London, and Blackpool, with the latter two cities holding open auditions in late 2016, along with Peterborough, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Kingston upon Hull, Lincoln, Reading, Manchester and Luton. The series was won by pianist Tokio Myers, with magician Issy Simpson coming in second, and stand-up comedian Daliso Chaponda placing third.

text: Series 12 (2018)[edit]

text: The twelfth series is set to begin airing on 14 April 2018.[33]

text: Britain's Got More Talent[edit]

text: Britain's Got More Talent is a companion sister show that is broadcast on ITV2, and is aired after each episode of Britain's Got Talent since the main show began in June 2007. Hosted by Stephen Mulhern (with occasional appearances by Ant & Dec), the programme operates in a similar manner to The Xtra Factor (the companion show of The X Factor), in that it features interviews with contestants and behind-the-scenes footage, though what is shown depends on what the main show is focused on during its broadcast. When the auditions stage is being broadcast, its sister show focus on highlights of acts that couldn't be shown on the main show, with Mulhern operating in a similar manner to Ant & Dec by viewing the performances in the wings and giving comments, as well as interviewing contestants before and after their performance. When the main show begins broadcasting live episodes, its sister show conducts live "after-show" episodes, featuring interviews with the semi-finalists/finalists, as well as chatting with the judges.

text: In addition to this format, each year also sees Britain's Got More Talent broadcasting a special set of compilation episodes featuring the best and worst auditions from that year's contest, entitled Britain's Got Talent: Best and Worst, which are presented by Mulhern who introduces each clip shown.

text: Reception[edit]

text: Awards and nominations[edit]

text: This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: Britain's Got Talent has been nominated for a number of National Television Awards in the category of 'Most Popular Talent Show' since 2007. But has lost out to its sister shows The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing. Ant and Dec have won the award for 'Most Popular Entertainment Presenters' at the same awards for twelve consecutive years (as of January 2014). Britain's Got Talent has also been nominated for two British Academy Television Awards in 2008, but failed to win any awards. In 2007 and 2008, the show was nominated at the TV Quick and Choice Awards in the 'Best Talent Show' category, losing out to The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing respectively.

text: In 2008, it was a recipient of a Royal Television Society Programme Award for its technical achievements. It has also won four Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards from five nominations. In 2009, it won its first ever Digital Spy Reality Award for George Sampson for 'Favourite Reality Contestant'. The show was further nominated in the 'Reality Show' category, but lost out to The X Factor in the 'Reality TV Presenter' category for Ant & Dec and two nominations in the 'Reality TV Judge' category for Cowell and Morgan.

text:
Year
Group
Award
Nominee
Result

2007
National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Ant & Dec
Won

Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards
Best Reality Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

Best TV Presenters
Ant & Dec
Won

TV Quick and Choice Awards
Best Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

2008
National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Nominated

Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Ant & Dec
Won

Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards
Favourite Winner
George Sampson
Won

British Academy Television Awards
Lew Grade Award
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

Audience Award
Nominated

Royal Television Society Programme Awards
Best Production Design-Entertainment
Dominic Tolfts
Won

Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards
Best TV Presenters
Ant & Dec
Won

Best Family TV Show
Britain's Got Talent
Won

Best TV Baddie
Simon Cowell
Won

2009
TV Quick and Choice Awards
Best Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

Digital Spy Reality TV Awards
Favourite TV Reality
Nominated

Favourite TV Reality Judge
Simon Cowell
Nominated

Piers Morgan
Nominated

Favourite TV Reality Presenters
Ant & Dec
Nominated

Favourite Reality Contestant
George Sampson
Won

2010
National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

British Academy Television Awards
Best Entertainment Programme
Won

2011
National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Nominated

TV Choice Awards
Best Talent Show
Won

2012
National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Nominated

2013
Broadcast Awards
Best Entertainment Programme
Nominated

National Television Awards
Most Popular Talent Show
Nominated

2014
Nominated

2015
Nominated

TV Judge
Simon Cowell
Nominated

David Walliams
Won

2016
Most Popular Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

2016 British Academy Television Awards
Best Entertainment Programme
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated[34]

2017
22nd National Television Awards
Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated[35]

TV Judge
Simon Cowell
Nominated[35]

David Walliams
Nominated[35]

2017 British Academy Television Awards
Best Entertainment Programme
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated[36]

Diversity in Media Awards
TV Programme of the Year
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

2018
23rd National Television Awards
Talent Show
Britain's Got Talent
Nominated

TV Judge
Simon Cowell
Nominated

David Walliams
Won

text: Controversies and criticism[edit]

text: The show was criticised by psychologist Glenn Wilson, who referred to it as a "freak show". He stated that "[contestants'] deficiencies and shortcomings are as important as their talent. We enjoy the stress we are putting these people under – will they or will they not survive?"[37]

text: The treatment of contestants at the audition stage was heavily criticised by the Daily Mail, which described applicants being kept waiting for over 10 hours with no food or drink provided, with no certainty of being allowed to perform more than a few seconds of their act. It also detailed how staff intentionally built up the hopes of low-quality performers in order to maximise the dramatic effect of the judges' put-downs, and the fine points of the contracts performers must sign, which gives the show infinite freedom to "modify" the footage for their own purposes, and to use the footage indefinitely for whatever purpose they choose.[38]

text: In two separate interviews in 2012, MC Kinky said "Shows like X Factor and Britain's Got Talent reduce the art of making music and practising your craft to the level of a low rent game show with huge financial backing and support. It's a means to make money, not a means to produce ground breaking or interesting artists that demonstrate what they are feeling or are compelled to do. It's corporate"[39] and "it's a churn 'em out fast food form of putrid shit that I have no affiliation with".[40]

text: In 2013, Bruce Forsyth questioned the show's allowing children to audition. He said, "I don't think that's entertainment. I don't think they should put children on that are too young. If you're going to do that, have a separate show. Have a children's show, British Children Have Talent."[41] Cowell responded to Forsyth, stating that: "someone, Mr Grumpy, said we shouldn't have children your age on the show", after the performance of dance troupe Youth Creation.[42] Jessie J joined the debate, declaring: "I cannot agree with kids having to go through three or four auditions when it's purely for ridicule. I don't understand why it's legal, I think it's wrong".[42]

text: In 2013 it was revealed that up to 50% of acts on the televised shows had been headhunted by producers. In 2012, electropop band Superpowerless were approached to appear in the semi-finals. They attended the audition after assurances that the act would be portrayed in a positive light. On the day they felt that all interviews, especially those with Stephen Mulhern, were conducted in a manner intending to portray them in a negative light, reducing their act to a novelty/comedy routine intended for ridicule and humiliation. While many newspapers wrote articles on this topic, very few were published as the news outlets were told that running the story would cut that publication out of any advance coverage of the show in the future.[43]

text: Live tour[edit]

text: Between 2008 - 2011, several of the show's semi-finalists, finalists, and winners from various series, took part in a live tour entitled "Britain's Got Talent Tour". The event consisted of several shows held across various UK cities during the Summer months, with site locations including Cardiff, Liverpool, Birmingham, Belfast, Sheffield, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Nottingham, London, and Manchester. When it was first announced on 17 April 2008, the 2008 Live tour, which consisted of thirteen dates, received high demands for tickets. This led to an extension in the number of performances for it, increasing it from twelve - the ten finalists from that year's series and two semi-finalists, Tracey Lee Collins and Anya Sparks - to twenty two, including matinées, and a duet with Faryl Smith and Andrew Johnston. The tour was hosted by Stephen Mulhern. He later went on to host the 2009 Live tour, which initially featured four dates but was later increased to run for eighteen shows, with the performers including Diversity, Flawless, Aidan Davis, Shaun Smith, Stavros Flatley, Hollie Steel, 2 Grand, Julian Smith, Shaheen Jafargholi, Susan Boyle, Darth Jackson, DJ Talent and the 2008 winner, George Sampson.

text: In 2010, the tour for that year featured a larger schedule, taking place across 16 cities and 23 shows. Hosted by comedian Paddy McGuinness, the tour featured performances by that year's finalists - Spelbound, Twist & Pulse, Kieran Gaffney, Tobias Mead, Tina & Chandi, Paul Burling, Christopher Stone, Janey Cutler, Liam McNally and Connected. In 2011, the tour was once again hosted by McGuinness, and featured performances by that year's finalists - Jai McDowall, Ronan Parke, New Bounce, Razy Gogonea, Michael Collings, Paul Gbegbaje, Steven Hall, James Hobley, Les Gibson and Jean Martyn.[44] Because of the financial climate that year, interest in the tour was low, resulting in less revenue from ticket sales. As a direct result, out of concern that a new tour would flop due to a lack of improved sales, the tour was axed in 2012.[45]

text: Merchandise[edit]

text: This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: There are 6 pieces of related merchandise:

text:
Best of The Auditions DVD (2009)
The Electronic Board Game (2009)
The Magic Set (2009)
Finalists of 2009: Annual 2010 (2009)
Be the judge buzzer (2010)
Finalists of 2010: Annual 2011 (2010)

text: BGT App[edit]

text: Since 2010, a Britain's Got Talent app has been available on Apple's App Store and Google Play. The features of the app vary from year to year but always include an interactive feature (e.g. a buzzer, polls or quizzes), relevant social media feeds and clips from the show. In 2015, free in-app voting was introduced. This means viewers are able to vote free of charge for five acts of their choice per voting window during the semi-finals and final rounds.[citation needed]


document_title: List of Magic: The Gathering sets

question_text: when will the next mtg set be released

question_tokens: when will the next mtg set be released

root

text: List of Magic: The Gathering sets

text: Base/core set editions[edit]

text: After the second version (Beta) of the first set, which contained two cards mistakenly excluded from the first version (Alpha), all subsequent base sets through 10th Edition consisted of cards that had been printed before in either the original base set or an expansion set. Alpha through Fifth Edition did not have set symbols printed on the actual cards, though those sets were retroactively given set symbols in Wizards of the Coast's official Gatherer[3] database of Magic cards.

tag: p

text:
Set
Set symbol[3]
Set code[4][3]
Pre-release date
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Limited Edition Alpha
None
LEA
none
August 5, 1993[6]
295[I]
74
95
116
—
10
—

Limited Edition Beta
None
LEB
none
October 1993[7]
302[I]
75
95
117
—
15
—

Unlimited Edition
None
2ED
none
December 1993[6]
302[I]
75
95
117
—
15
—

Revised Edition[II]
None
3ED
none
April 1994[8]
306
75
95
121
—
15
—

Fourth Edition
None
4ED
none
April 1995[9]
378
121
121
121
—
15
—

Fifth Edition
None / Roman-numeral five[III]
5ED
none
March 24, 1997[10]
449
165
132
132
—
20
—

Classic Sixth Edition
A Roman-numeral six
6ED
none
April 28, 1999[10]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Seventh Edition
A serif numeral seven
7ED
none
April 11, 2001[10]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Eighth Edition
The number eight superimposed over three fanned cards
8ED
none
July 28, 2003[11]
357
110
110
110
—
20
7[IV]

Ninth Edition
The number nine superimposed over three fanned cards
9ED
none
July 29, 2005[12]
359
110
110
110
—
20
9[IV]

Tenth Edition
A Roman-numeral ten
10E
none
July 13, 2007[13]
383
121
121
121
—
20
—

Magic 2010
"M10"
M10
July 11, 2009[14]
July 17, 2009[15]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Magic 2011
"M11"
M11
July 10, 2010[16]
July 16, 2010[16]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Magic 2012
"M12"
M12
July 9, 2011[17]
July 15, 2011[17]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Magic 2013
"M13"
M13
July 7, 2012[18]
July 13, 2012[18]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Magic 2014
"M14"
M14
July 13, 2013[19]
July 19, 2013[19]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Magic 2015
"M15"
M15
July 12, 2014[20]
July 18, 2014[20]
269
101
80[21]
53
15
20
15[IV]

Magic Origins
Planeswalker symbol breaking through the horizon
ORI
July 11, 2015[22]
July 17, 2015[22]
272
101
80
55
16
20
16[IV]

Core Set 2019
unrevealed
M19
July 7, 2018
July 13, 2018[23]
280
unrevealed

tag: table

text: Expansion sets[edit]

text: Expansion sets from Ice Age to Rivals of Ixalan (with the exception of Homelands) came in groups called "blocks". (From 1997–2008, Wizards of the Coast also used the term "cycle" when describing the associated storyline.) Blocks were cohesive products: they centered around one plane, followed a particular storyline, and contained cards and mechanics that supported both. Blocks generally consisted of one large "stand-alone" expansion set of 250–300 cards, followed by one or two small expansion sets of 150–200 cards which continue the themes introduced in the large set. Like the base set, stand-alone expansion sets contain basic land cards; other expansion sets do not. Beginning with Alliances, expansion sets were given codenames while in development; the code names of the expansions of a cycle usually fit together to form a phrase or common theme.[24] Starting with Mirage in 1996, blocks were officially refined in form: they would consist of three sets, large-small-small. With Zendikar block in 2009, the traditional large-small-small block structure began to be varied, with some blocks including a second large set later in the block. Starting with the Battle for Zendikar block in 2015, the default structure of a block was changed to large-small, with each block consisting of only two sets and two blocks released per year.[25]

text: Ice Age and Alliances were the first two sets to have a well-defined relationship, but were not created as a canonical block at the time of printing. Also beginning with Alliances in June 1996, expansion sets were released in a regular pattern: the base sets were released in October with the small expansion sets being released in February and June (Alliances was originally the third set of the block; it was retroactively made a second set with the release of Coldsnap in 2006). With the exceptions of Stronghold, a 1998 set released in March rather than February, and Scourge, a 2003 set which was released in May rather than June, this pattern of months was never broken, over a 10-year period, until 2006, when Dissension was also released a month early in May instead of June, because of the July release of Coldsnap. The third set in a block has since been released in late April or early May. From 2005–2015, there was a fourth release date each year in mid-July, usually reserved for Core Sets. Other summer releases included Coldsnap and Eventide.[XXVI]

text: Fallen Empires was an experimental expansion in which most card have three or four different pieces of artwork. You could see them as 121 common cards, by art, or 36 cards by the text. It was also a major expansion in the idea of tribes, especially Goblins and Merfolk.

text: Most early expansion sets did not have exact release dates; they were just shipped out within the space of a week, and retailers could start selling them as soon as the sets were received. By the time of Alliances in 1996, however, release dates were set as Mondays (the earliest set with an exact Monday release date might possibly have preceded Alliances, but Alliances is the earliest set with a cited and confirmed Monday release date). Beginning with Mirrodin in 2003, the release dates were changed from Monday to Friday. All sets beginning with Homelands[VI] also have a pre-release date, on which cards are sold in limited quantities in pre-release tournaments. These tournaments were formerly always held two weeks before the release date, but since Shards of Alara they are now held one week before the release date.

text: Premium foil cards have been inserted into booster packs since Urza's Legacy. Originally 1 foil card was inserted for every 100 cards. The ratio was changed to 1 in 70 cards with the Torment expansion. Beginning with Tenth Edition the rate was increased to 1 in 56 cards.[26]

text: Starting with Kaladesh block, sets sometimes also contain an entry in the Masterpiece Series.[27]

text: The block model has evolved as time went on. In addition to a formalized structure (which was occasionally variated on), Wizards began to have trouble developing small sets that satisfied their own quality standards. Players also reported fatigue at playing in the same environment for a year at a time. The decision to remove one small set from each block, as showcased in Battle For Zendikar block, was a result of this dissatisfaction. It culminated in the decision to delete small sets entirely: After the Ixalan block concludes, forthcoming sets will all be large-sized sets. However, not all large-size sets will involve travel to a new plane; some will be sequels to the set prior to it, if the depth of the plane's story and mechanics allows. Dominaria, to be released in 2018, will be the first set under this model.[27]

text:
Set
Expansion
symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Development
codename[24]
Pre-release date
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total
Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic
Land
Other

Arabian Nights
A scimitar
ARN
Arabian Nights[28]
none
December 1993[29]
92[V]
41
19
32
—
1
—

Antiquities
An anvil
ATQ
Antiquities[28]
none
March 1994[30]
100[VI]
30
44
26
—
—
—

Legends
The capital of a Doric column
LEG
Legends[28]
none
June 1994[31]
310
75
114
121
—
—
—

The Dark
A thin crescent moon
DRK
The Dark [28]
none
August 1994[32]
119
40
44
35
—
—
—

Fallen Empires
A crown
FEM
Fallen Empires[28]
none
November 1994[33]
187[VII]
121
30
36
—
—
—

Ice Age
A snowflake
ICE
Ice Age[28]
none[VII]
June 1995[34]
383
121
121
121
—
20
—

Homelands[IX]
The globe of Ulgrotha
HML
Homelands[28]
October 14, 1995[VII]
October 1995[35]
140[X]
71
27
42
—
—
—

Alliances
A flowing banner
ALL
Quack[24]
May 18, 1996[36]
June 10, 1996[10]
199[XI]
110
43
46
—
—
—

Mirage Block

Mirage
A palm tree
MIR
Sosumi/Menagerie[24]
September 21, 1996[37][XXV]
October 7, 1996[10]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Visions
Zhalfirin Triangle of War/stylized "V"
VIS
Mirage Jr.[24]
January 11, 1997[38]
February 3, 1997[39]
167
62
55
50
—
—
—

Weatherlight
The Thran Tome, an open book
WTH
Mochalatte[24]
May 31, 1997[40]
June 9, 1997[10]
167
62
55
50
—
—
—

Rath Cycle or Tempest Block

Tempest
A storm cloud
TMP
Bogavhati[24]
October 4, 1997[41]
October 13, 1997[10]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Stronghold
A portcullis
STH
Rachimulot[24]
February 21, 1998[42]
March 2, 1998[10]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Exodus
A bridge
EXO
Gorgonzola[24]
June 6, 1998[43]
June 15, 1998[10]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Artifacts Cycle or Urza Block

Urza's Saga
Two gears
USG
Armadillo[24]
October 3, 1998[44]
October 12, 1998[45]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Urza's Legacy
A hammer
ULG
Guacamole[24]
February 6, 1999[46]
February 15, 1999[10]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Urza's Destiny
An Erlenmeyer flask
UDS
Chimichanga[24]
May 29, 1999[41]
June 7, 1999[47]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Masquerade Cycle or Masques Block

Mercadian Masques
A domino mask
MMQ
Archimedes[24]
September 25, 1999[48]
October 4, 1999[49]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Nemesis
The spiked halberd wielded by Crovax
NEM
Euripides[24]
February 5, 2000[50]
February 14, 2000[51]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Prophecy
Three crystals
PCY
Dionysus[24]
May 27, 2000
June 5, 2000[52]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Invasion Block

Invasion
The symbol of the Coalition[XII]
INV
Beijing[24]
September 23, 2000[41]
October 2, 2000[53]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Planeshift
A swirling portal
PLS
Hong Kong[24]
January 27, 2001[54]
February 5, 2001[54]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Apocalypse
The mask of Yawgmoth
APC
Shanghai[24]
May 26, 2001[55]
June 4, 2001
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Odyssey Block

Odyssey
The Mirari on a twisted stand
ODY
Argon[24]
September 22, 2001[41]
October 1, 2001
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Torment
An ouroboros
TOR
Boron[24]
January 26, 2002[56]
February 4, 2002[56]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Judgment
A balancing scale
JUD
Carbon[24]
May 18, 2002
May 27, 2002[57]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Onslaught Block

Onslaught
A four-legged "morph"[XIII] creature
ONS
Manny[24]
September 28, 2002[58]
October 7, 2002[58]
350
110
110
110
—
20
—

Legions
Two crossed spears behind a shield
LGN
Moe[24]
January 25, 2003[59]
February 3, 2003
145
55
45
45
—
—
—

Scourge
A dragon mask
SCG
Jack[24]
May 17, 2003[60]
May 26, 2003[60]
143
55
44
44
—
—
—

Mirrodin Block

Mirrodin
The Sword of Kaldra
MRD
Bacon[24]
September 20, 2003[61]
October 3, 2003[61]
306
110
88
88
—
20
—

Darksteel
The shield of Kaldra
DST
Lettuce[24]
January 24, 2004[62]
February 6, 2004[62]
165
55
55
55
—
—
—

Fifth Dawn
The helm of Kaldra
5DN
Tomato[24]
May 22, 2004[63]
June 4, 2004[64]
165
55
55
55
—
—
—

Kamigawa Block

Champions of Kamigawa
A torii gate
CHK
Earth[24]
September 18, 2004[65]
October 1, 2004[66]
306
110
88[XIV]
88
—
20
—

Betrayers of Kamigawa
A shuriken
BOK
Wind[24]
January 22, 2005[67]
February 4, 2005[66]
165
55
55
55
—
—
—

Saviors of Kamigawa
A Japanese-style lantern
SOK
Fire[24]
May 21, 2005[68]
June 3, 2005[66]
165
55
55
55
—
—
—

Ravnica Block

Ravnica: City of Guilds
A Gothic-style church tower
RAV
Control[69]
September 24, 2005[70]
October 7, 2005[71]
306
110
88
88
—
20
—

Guildpact
The seal of the Guildpact
GPT
Alt[69]
January 21, 2006[72]
February 3, 2006[72]
165
55
55
55
—
—
—

Dissension
The broken seal of the Guildpact
DIS
Delete[69]
April 22, 2006[73]
May 5, 2006[73]
180
60
60
60
—
—
—

Coldsnap

Coldsnap[IX]
A hanging trio of icicles
CSP
Splat[24]
July 8, 2006[74]
July 21, 2006[75]
155
60
55
40
—
—
—

Time Spiral Block

Time Spiral
An hourglass
TSP/TSB[XV]
Snap[69]
September 23, 2006[76]
October 6, 2006[76]
422[XV]
121
80
80
—
20
121

Planar Chaos
Stylized letters "PC" / Möbius strip
PLC
Crackle[69]
January 20, 2007[77]
February 2, 2007[77]
165[XV]
60
55
50
—
—
—

Future Sight
an eye gazing through a rift portal
FUT
Pop[69]
April 21, 2007[78]
May 4, 2007[78]
180[XV]
60
60
60
—
—
—

Lorwyn Block

Lorwyn
Elvish "leaf blade" with a serrated edge
LRW
Peanut[79]
September 29, 2007[80]
October 12, 2007[80]
301
121
80
80
—
20
—

Morningtide
Sunrise / A flame
MOR
Butter[79]
January 19, 2008[81]
February 1, 2008[81]
150
60
40
50
—
—
—

Shadowmoor Block[82]

Shadowmoor
Crown of the Reaper King
SHM
Jelly[79]
April 19, 2008[83]
May 2, 2008[83]
301
121
80
80
—
20
—

Eventide
Eclipsed sun
EVE
Doughnut[82]
July 12, 2008[84]
July 25, 2008[84]
180
60
60
60
—
—
—

Alara Block

Shards of Alara
5-part gem
ALA
Rock[85]
September 27, 2008[86]
October 3, 2008[87]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Conflux
5-shard shield
CON
Paper[85]
January 31, 2009[88]
February 6, 2009[88]
145
60
40
35
10
—
—

Alara Reborn
5-branched gem
ARB
Scissors[85]
April 25, 2009[89]
April 30, 2009[89]
145
60
40
35
10
—
—

Zendikar Block

Zendikar
A hedron
ZEN
Live[85]
September 26, 2009[90]
October 2, 2009[90]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Worldwake
A hedron opening
WWK
Long[85]
January 30, 2010[91]
February 5, 2010[91]
145
60
40
35
10
—
—

Rise of the Eldrazi
A hedron opened
ROE
Prosper[85]
April 17, 2010[92]
April 23, 2010[92]
248
100
60
53
15
20
—

Scars of Mirrodin Block

Scars of Mirrodin
Encircled hexplate with a smaller hex cut out
SOM
Lights[93]
September 25, 2010[94]
October 1, 2010[94]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Mirrodin Besieged
Mirran/Phyrexian symbols combined
MBS
Camera[93]
January 29, 2011[95]
February 4, 2011[95]
155
60
40
35
10
10
—

New Phyrexia
The letter Phi, the symbol of Phyrexia
NPH
Action[93]
May 7, 2011[96][97]
May 13, 2011[96][97]
175
60
60
35
10
10
—

Innistrad Block

Innistrad
Two stylized outward facing herons[98]
ISD[99]
Shake[93]
September 24, 2011[100]
September 30, 2011[100]
264[XXVII]
107
67
59
16
15
—

Dark Ascension
Innistrad symbol turned inward[101]
DKA[102]
Rattle[93]
January 28, 2012[102]
February 3, 2012[102]
158[XXVII]
64
44
38
12
—
—

Avacyn Restored
The collar of Avacyn
AVR[103]
Roll[93]
April 28, 2012[103]
May 4, 2012[103]
244
101
60
53
15
15
—

Return to Ravnica Block

Return to Ravnica
Symbol of the five guilds in set
RTR[104]
Hook[85][105]
September 29, 2012[104]
October 5, 2012[104]
274
101
80
53
15
25
—

Gatecrash
Pointed arch
GTC[106]
Line[85][105]
January 26, 2013[106]
February 1, 2013[106]
249
101
80
53
15
—
—

Dragon's Maze
Return to Ravnica and Gatecrash symbols combined[107]
DGM[107]
Sinker[85][105]
April 27, 2013[107]
May 3, 2013[107]
156[XXVIII]
70
40
35
11
—
—

Theros Block

Theros
Column and arcs
THS[108]
Friends[85][105]
September 21, 2013[108]
September 27, 2013[108]
249
101
60
53
15
20
—

Born of the Gods
Horns of Xenagos
BNG[109]
Romans[85][105]
February 1, 2014[109]
February 7, 2014[109]
165
60
60
35
10
—
—

Journey into Nyx
Horns of Xenagos and column
JOU[110]
Countrymen[85][105]
April 26, 2014[111]
May 2, 2014[110]
165
60
60
35
10
—
—

Khans of Tarkir Block

Khans of Tarkir
Two crossed scimitars in front of a shield
KTK[112]
Huey[113]
September 20, 2014[112]
September 26, 2014[112]
269
101
80
53
15
20
—

Fate Reforged
Two mirrored fangs
FRF[114]
Dewey[113]
January 17, 2015[114]
January 23, 2015[114]
185[XXIX]
70
60
35
10
10
—

Dragons of Tarkir
A shield in the shape of a dragon's face
DTK[115]
Louie[113]
March 21, 2015[115]
March 27, 2015[115]
264
101
80
53
15
15
—

Battle for Zendikar Block

Battle for Zendikar
A hedron with a "Z" crimp
BFZ[116]
Blood[117]
September 26, 2015[116]
October 2, 2015[116]
274[XXX]
101
80
53
15
25
—[XXX]

Oath of the Gatewatch
Kozilek blade projections
OGW[118]
Sweat[117]
January 16, 2016[118]
January 22, 2016[118]
184[XXX]
70
60
42[119]
12[119]
—
—[XXX]

Shadows over Innistrad Block

Shadows over Innistrad
Avacyn's collar deformed (in this case, upside-down)
SOI[120]
Tears[117]
April 2, 2016[120]
April 8, 2016[120]
297[XXXI]
105
100
59
18
15
—

Eldritch Moon
Silhouette of Emrakul
EMN [121]
Fears[25]
July 16, 2016[121]
July 22, 2016[121]
205[XXXI]
74
70
47
14[122]
—
—

Kaladesh Block

Kaladesh
Stylized vines
KLD
Lock[123]
September 24, 2016
September 30, 2016
264
101
80
53
15
15
—

Aether Revolt
Stylized blossom
AER
Stock[123]
January 14, 2017
January 20, 2017
184
70
60
42
12
—
—

Amonkhet Block

Amonkhet
Pyramid with floating top
AKH
Barrel[123]
April 22, 2017
April 28, 2017
269
101
80
53
15
20
—

Hour of Devastation
Horns of Nicol Bolas
HOU
Laughs[124]
July 8, 2017
July 14, 2017
199
70
60
42
12
15
—

Ixalan Block

Ixalan
Compass rose
XLN
Ham[125]
September 23, 2017
September 29, 2017
279
101
80
63
15
20
—

Rivals of Ixalan
Half compass rose with two Northern points
RIX[126]
Eggs[125]
January 13, 2018
January 19, 2018
196
70
60
48
13
5
—

Post-block sets[27]

Dominaria
the Weatherlight
DOM
Soup[127]
April 21, 2018
April 27, 2018
269
101
80
53
15
20
—

"Spaghetti"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Spaghetti[128]
c. September 2018
c. September 2018
unrevealed

"Meatballs"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Meatballs[128]
c. January 2019
c. January 2019
unrevealed

"Milk"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Milk[129]
c. Spring 2019
c. Spring 2019
unrevealed

"Archery"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Archery[130]
c. September 2019
c. September 2019
unrevealed

"Baseball"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Baseball[130]
c. January 2020
c. January 2020
unrevealed

"Cricket"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Cricket[131]
c. Spring 2020
c. Spring 2020
unrevealed

"Diving"
unrevealed
unrevealed
Diving[132]
c. September 2020
c. September 2020
unrevealed

text: Other sets[edit]

text: Introductory sets[edit]

text: These introductory sets were intended for novice Magic: The Gathering players. They were illegal in sanctioned tournaments until October 2005,[133] when they became legal in Legacy and Vintage.

text:
Set
Expansion
symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Portal[XIX]

Portal
A portal
POR
June 1997[134]
222[XX]
90
57
55
—
20
—

Portal Second Age
A pentagon
P02
June 1998[135]
165
70
45
35
—
15
—

Portal Three Kingdoms
The Chinese character for the number 3
PTK
May 1999[136]
180
55
55
55
—
15
—

Starter

Starter 1999
A five-pointed star
S99
July 1999[137]
173
63
55
35
—
20
—

Starter 2000
None
S00
July 2000[138]
57[XXI]
39
6
2
—
10
—

text: Compilations/reprint sets[edit]

text: Reprint sets are sets of certain cards from previous sets that were re-released for different reasons. Some reasons include the cards were fan favorites and popular demand brought them back or in some cases, reprints were to commemorate certain events such as widely known matches or anniversary sets. Some reprint sets revolved around a certain theme; for example, Beatdown was themed around old, out-of-print, heavy-hitting creatures. Reprinting a card in one of these sets does not affect when it leaves Standard.

text: Deck Builder's Toolkits are released at the same time as a core set and contain only cards from sets that are legal in Standard at that time; they are not sets as such. These boxed sets therefore have no symbol or code of their own.

text:
Set
Expansion symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Chronicles[XVII]
No specific symbol[XVIII]
CHR
July 1995[139]
125[XVII]
37
43
45
—
—
—

Rivals Quick Start Set
No specific symbol
none
July 1996[140]
Four pre-constructed decks

Multiverse Gift Box
No specific symbol
none
November 1996[141]
Boosters from various sets in various languages

Anthologies
No specific symbol
ATH
November 1998[142]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Battle Royale Box Set
No specific symbol
BRB
November 12, 1999[143]
Four 40-card pre-constructed decks

Beatdown Box Set
A mace
BTD
December 2000[144]
Two 61-card pre-constructed decks

Deckmasters: Garfield vs. Finkel
A stylized letter "D"
DKM
September 17, 2001[145]
Two 62-card pre-constructed decks

Premium Foil Booster
Alara block symbols
none
January 8, 2010[146]
539 foil cards from the Alara block[XXXV]

Duels of the Planeswalkers (decks)
A stylized letter "M" inside a circle
DPA
June 4, 2010[147]
Five 60-card decks

Modern Event Deck
Three-pronged object
MD1
May 30, 2014[148]
60-card deck, 15-card sideboard

International Sets

Renaissance (French/German)
No specific symbol
none
August 1995[139]
122
51
40
31
—
—
—

Rinascimento (Italian)
No specific symbol
none
August 1995[139]
69
?
?
?
—
—
—

Duel Decks

Duel Decks: Elves vs. Goblins
A stylized axe and bow combination symbol
EVG
November 16, 2007[149]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Jace vs. Chandra
A point-reflected pair of swooshes
DD2
November 7, 2008[150]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Divine vs. Demonic
A halo with horns coming up through its center
DDC
April 10, 2009[151]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Garruk vs. Liliana
A leaf inside a semicircle
DDD
October 30, 2009[152]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Phyrexia vs. the Coalition
Yawgmoth's and the Coalition's symbols combined
DDE
March 19, 2010[153]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret
Two trapezoids with parts missing
DDF
September 3, 2010[154]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Knights vs. Dragons
A shield in the shape of a dragon in flight
DDG
April 1, 2011[155]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Ajani vs. Nicol Bolas
Nicol Bolas' horns superimposed on Ajani's axe-head
DDH
September 2, 2011[156]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth
Two nearly-interlocking zigzags
DDI
March 30, 2012[157]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Izzet vs. Golgari
Combination of Izzet and Golgari symbols
DDJ
September 7, 2012[158]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Sorin vs. Tibalt
Combination of stylized sword and devil horns
DDK
March 15, 2013[159]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Heroes vs. Monsters
Combination axe, helmet, and wings
DDL
September 6, 2013[160]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Jace vs. Vraska
Arcane symbol and gorgon tentacle
DDM
March 14, 2014[161]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Speed vs. Cunning
Winged eye
DDN
September 5, 2014[162]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks Anthology
No specific symbol
DD3
December 5, 2014[163]
A reprint of the first four Dual Deck sets

Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Kiora
Godsend (Elspeth's spear) and waves
DDO
February 27, 2015[164]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Zendikar vs. Eldrazi
Half-hedron and Eldrazi tentacle
DDP
August 28, 2015[165]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Blessed vs. Cursed
Demon wing and half of Avacyn's collar
DDQ
February 26, 2016[166]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Nissa vs. Ob Nixilis
Hedron and horns
DDR
September 2, 2016[167]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Mind vs. Might
Stylized knotwork
DDS
March 31, 2017[168]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Merfolk vs. Goblins
Combined trident and axe heads
DDT
November 10, 2017[169]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

Duel Decks: Elves vs. Inventors
Bow and arrow superimposed on gear
DDU
April 6, 2018[170]
Two 60-card pre-constructed decks

From the Vault

From the Vault: Dragons
Wings of a Dragon
DRB
August 29, 2008[171]
15 limited foil dragon cards

From the Vault: Exiled
An arrow firing diagonally leaving a trail
V09
August 28, 2009[172]
15 limited foil formerly banned cards

From the Vault: Relics
An orb on a stand
V10
August 27, 2010[173]
15 limited foil artifact cards

From the Vault: Legends
A crown[174]
V11
August 26, 2011[174]
15 limited foil legendary creature cards

From the Vault: Realms
Mountain and sunrise
V12
August 31, 2012[175]
15 limited foil land cards

From the Vault: Twenty
Numeral 20 in a circle
V13
August 23, 2013[176]
20 limited foil cards

From the Vault: Annihilation
Stylized bomb or fractured orb
V14
August 22, 2014[177]
15 limited foil cards

From the Vault: Angels
Stylized angel wings
V15
August 21, 2015[178]
15 limited foil cards

From the Vault: Lore
Scroll unrolling to become castle tower
V16
August 19, 2016[179]
15 limited foil cards and one token

From the Vault: Transform
unrevealed
V17
November 24, 2017[180]
15 limited foil double-faced cards

Signature Spellbook

Signature Spellbook: Jace
unrevealed
SS1
June 15, 2018[181]
9 cards

Premium Deck Series

Premium Deck Series: Slivers
A coiled sliver
H09
November 20, 2009[182]
60-card premium foil deck

Premium Deck Series: Fire and Lightning
A flame and lightning bolt
PD2
November 19, 2010[183]
60-card premium foil deck

Premium Deck Series: Graveborn
A human skull
PD3
November 18, 2011[184]
60-card premium foil deck

Masters Series

Modern Masters
A stylized City of Brass
MMA
June 7, 2013[185]
229[185]
101[186]
60[186]
53[186]
15[186]
—
—

Modern Masters 2015 Edition
The City of Brass symbol rotated and then mirrored
MM2
May 22, 2015[187]
249[187]
101
80
53
15
—
—

Eternal Masters
Unusually-shaped hourglass
EMA
June 10, 2016[188]
249[188]
101
80
53
15
—
—

Modern Masters 2017 Edition
Floating "U" over crown
MM3
March 17, 2017[189]
249[189]
101
80
53
15
—
—

Iconic Masters
Stylized letters I and M.
IMA
November 17, 2017[190]
249[190]
unrevealed

Masters 25
The number 25 over the planeswalker symbol
A25
March 16, 2018[191]
249[190]
unrevealed

Deck Builder's Toolkits

Deck Builder's Toolkit
"M10"
w10
May 21, 2010[192]
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (Refreshed Version)
"M11"
w11
March 11, 2011[192]
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (2012 Edition)
"M12"
w12
July 13, 2012
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (2014 Core Set Edition)
"M14"
w14
July 19, 2013
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (2015 Core Set Edition)
"M15"
w15
July 18, 2014
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (Magic Origins Edition)
Planeswalker symbol breaking through the horizon
ORI
July 17, 2015
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (Shadows over Innistrad Edition)
Star with trail and "16"
w16
April 8, 2016
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (Amonkhet Edition)
Star with trail and "17"
w17
April 28, 2017
Box set of 285 cards

Deck Builder's Toolkit (Ixalan Edition)
Star with trail and "17"
w17
September 29, 2017
Box set of 285 cards

(Holiday) Gift Boxes

2012 Holiday Gift Box
N/A
N/A
November 16, 2012[193]
4 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Return to Ravnica (Dreg Mangler), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

2013 Holiday Gift Box
N/A
N/A
November 15, 2013[194]
4 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Theros (Karametra's Acolyte), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

2014 Holiday Gift Box
N/A
N/A
November 14, 2014[195]
4 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Khans of Tarkir (Sultai Charm), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

2015 Holiday Gift Box
N/A
N/A
November 6, 2015[196]
5 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Battle for Zendikar (Scythe Leopard), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

Shadows over Innistrad: The Gift Box
N/A
N/A
May 13, 2016 [197]
5 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Shadows over Innistrad (Ravenous Bloodseeker), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

Kaladesh: The Gift Box
N/A
N/A
N/A
5 Boosters, 20 basic lands, 1 foil alternate-art card from Kaladesh (Chief of the Foundry), 6 illustrated plastic dividers + stickers for customizing the dividers

text: Masterpiece Series[edit]

text: Starting with Kaladesh block, some blocks and sets also include an entry in the Masterpiece Series. The Zendikar Expeditions from Battle for Zendikar were not released under the title of Masterpiece Series, but were retroactively included in the series.[198] Cards in the Masterpiece Series entry for a given block appear in booster packs for that block's sets at a rate lower than that of Mythic Rares, and consist of either reprints, or cards from the set whose packs they appear in. However, they are not considered part of that set, and instead get their own expansion symbol; moreover, as with reprint sets (see below), printing in a Masterpiece Series entry does not affect format legality. Note that entries in the Masterpiece Series do not have expansion codes, except for Zendikar Expeditions, which has code "EXP".

text:
Block/set
Set
Expansion symbol[3]
Release Date
Total Cards
Cards in first set
Cards in second set

Battle for Zendikar
Zendikar Expeditions
Hedron with base
September 26, 2015
45
25
20

Kaladesh
Kaladesh Inventions
Stylized column or letter π
September 24, 2016
54
30
24

Amonkhet
Amonkhet Invocations
Nicol Bolas' head shape
April 28, 2017
54
30
24

text: Multiplayer-focused sets[edit]

text: Starting with Planechase in 2009, Wizards of the Coast has occasionally printed sets intended primarily for multiplayer play, which do not necessarily consist entirely of reprints but are not legal in Standard; a card printed in one of these is legal only in Eternal formats, and reprinting a card in one of these sets does not affect when it leaves Standard. These sets usually consist of fixed decks.

text:
Set
Expansion symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Release date
Size[3][5]
New cards

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Planechase

Planechase
Two circular arcs, the lower with three upper spikes
HOP
September 4, 2009[199]
Four 60-card decks + 40 plane cards
0

Planechase 2012 Edition
Two circular arcs, the upper with three bites removed from bottom
PC2
June 1, 2012[200]
Four 60-card decks and 40 plane or phenomenon cards
21

Planechase Anthology
Two circular arcs, the upper with five upper spikes
PCA
November 25, 2016[201]
Four 60-card decks and 86 plane or phenomenon cards
0

Archenemy

Archenemy
A trident
ARC
June 18, 2010[202]
Four decks, each with 60 cards and 20 oversized scheme cards
0

Archenemy: Nicol Bolas
Nicol's horns with orb
E01
June 16, 2017[203]
Four 60-card decks, four planeswalker cards, and one 20-card scheme deck
0

Commander

Commander
Three prongs symbolizing the "wedge" coloration
CMD
June 17, 2011[204]
Five 100-card decks each with 3 oversized foil Commander cards
51

Commander's Arsenal
3-part gem
CM1
November 2, 2012[205]
28 foil cards (18 regular, 10 oversized)
0

Commander 2013 Edition
3-part gem with hooks
C13
November 1, 2013[206]
Five 100-card decks each with 3 oversized foil Commander cards
51

Commander 2014
Shield-shaped 3-part gem
C14
November 7, 2014[207]
Five 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
61

Commander 2015
2-part shield
C15
November 13, 2015[208]
Five 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
56

Commander 2016
Bisected shield
C16
November 11, 2016[209]
Five 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
56

Commander Anthology
Shield with crown
CMA
June 9, 2017[210]
Four 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
0

Commander 2017
Shield with 4 parts
C17
August 25, 2017[211]
Four 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
56

Commander Anthology Volume II
unrevealed
CM2
June 8, 2018[212]
Four 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
0

Commander 2018
unrevealed
C18
August 10, 2018[213]
Four 100-card decks each with 1 oversized foil Commander card
unrevealed

Conspiracy

Conspiracy
Seal
CNS
June 6, 2014[214]
210[XXXII]
89
68
43
10
—
—
65

Conspiracy: Take the Crown
Seal of the Black Rose
CN2
August 26, 2016[215]
221[215]
90
67
50
14
—
—
80

Other sets

Explorers of Ixalan
Ship's wheel
E02
November 24, 2017[216]
Four 60-card decks and various game components
0

Battlebond
unrevealed
BBD[217]
June 8, 2018[218]
254[218]
85

text: Non-DCI-sanctioned-tournament-play-legal sets[edit]

text: These sets, though also published by Wizards of the Coast, are not legal for DCI-sanctioned tournament play.

text:
Set
Expansion symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Pre-release date
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Collector's Edition[219]
no symbol[XXXIII]
CED
none
December 1993[220]
363
75
95
117
—
76
—

International Collector's Edition
no symbol[XXXIV]
CED
none
December 1993[220]
363
75
95
117
—
76
—

Astral[XXII]
star with a trail
none
none
April 1997[221]
12
—
—
—
—
—
—

Un-sets[XXIII]

Unglued
A cracked-open egg
UGL
August 7, 1998[41]
August 17, 1998
88
33
22
28
—
5
—

Unhinged
A horseshoe
UNH
November 20, 2004[222]
November 19, 2004[222]
141
55
40
40
—
5
1[XXIV]

Unstable
A wrench with an acorn-shaped hole
UST
none
December 8, 2017
268[XXXVI][223]
102[XXXVI]
90[XXXVI]
61[XXXVI]
15
5
—

World Championship Decks

World Championship Decks 1999
No specific symbol
none
none
1999[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

World Championship Decks 2000
No specific symbol
none
none
2000[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

World Championship Decks 2001
No specific symbol
none
none
2001[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

World Championship Decks 2002
No specific symbol
none
none
2002[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

World Championship Decks 2003
No specific symbol
none
none
2003[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

World Championship Decks 2004
No specific symbol
none
none
2004[224]
Four 60-card pre-constructed decks

text: Magic: The Gathering Online exclusive sets[edit]

text: These sets are exclusive to Magic: The Gathering Online.

text:
Set
Expansion
symbol[3]
Expansion
code[4][3]
Release date
Size[3][5]

Total Cards
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Mythic Rare
Basic Land
Other

Masters Editions

Masters Edition
A circle and a quarter-circle
MED
September 10, 2007[225]
195
60
60
60
—
15
—

Masters Edition II
A circle and two quarter-circles
ME2
September 22, 2008[226]
245
80
80
80
—
5
—

Masters Edition III
A circle behind two quarter-circles
ME3
September 7, 2009[227]
230
75
70
70
—
15
—

Masters Edition IV
4 quarter-circles forming an hourglass
ME4
January 10, 2011[228]
269
80
72
105
—
12
—

Vintage Masters
Helmet with a V-shaped pattern
VMA
June 16, 2014[229]
325
101
80
105
30
—
9

Tempest Remastered
Arch broken by lightning bolt
TPR
May 6, 2015[230]
269
101
80
53
15
20
—

Magic: The Gathering Online Deck Series

Magic Online Deck Series: Legacy Format
No specific symbol
N/A
November 8, 2010[231]
Two 60-card decks with 15 card sideboards

Momir Vig Basic Event Deck
No specific symbol
N/A
November 22, 2010[232]
Deck with 1 avatar card & 60 basic lands

text: Notes[edit]


document_title: Ask Me How I Know

question_text: when is ask me how i know coming out

question_tokens: when is ask me how i know coming out

text: Ask Me How I Know

text:
"Ask Me How I Know"

Single by Garth Brooks

from the album Gunslinger

Released
March 17, 2017

Format
CD single, music download

Genre
Country

Length
3:34

Label
Pearl

Songwriter(s)
Mitch Rossell

Producer(s)
Mark Miller

Garth Brooks singles chronology

"Baby, Let's Lay Down and Dance"
(2016)
"Ask Me How I Know"
(2017)

"Baby, Let's Lay Down and Dance"
(2016)
"Ask Me How I Know"
(2017)

text: "Ask Me How I Know" is a song recorded by American country music singer Garth Brooks, and written by Mitch Rossell. It was released on March 17, 2017 as the second single off Brooks's 2016 album, Gunslinger.[1][2] The single's release coincided with the announcement of Brooks performing at South by Southwest, as well as the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. It became his first number one song since "More Than a Memory" in 2007.[3][4]

text: Charts[edit]

text:
Chart (2017)
Peak
position

Canada Country (Billboard)[5]
30

US Billboard Hot 100[6]
71

US Country Airplay (Billboard)[7]
1

US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[8]
13

text: Year-end charts[edit]

text:
Chart (2017)
Position

US Billboard Country Airplay[9]
40

text:
Preceded by
"Greatest Love Story"
by Lanco
Billboard Country Airplay
number-one single
December 16, 2017
Succeeded by
"Light It Up"
by Luke Bryan


document_title: The Looming Tower (miniseries)

question_text: who is diane marsh based on looming tower

text: The Looming Tower (miniseries)

text: Premise[edit]

text: The Looming Tower traces the "rising threat of Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda in the late 1990s and how the rivalry between the FBI and CIA during that time may have inadvertently set the path for the tragedy of 9/11. It follows members of the I-49 Squad in New York and Alec Station in Washington, D.C., the counter-terrorism divisions of the FBI and CIA, respectively, as they travel the world fighting for ownership of information while seemingly working toward the same goal – trying to prevent an imminent attack on U.S. soil."[1]

text: Cast and characters[edit]

text: Main[edit]

text:
Jeff Daniels as John O'Neill, the chief of the New York FBI's Counterterrorism Center known as "I-49". He is convinced that the United States has been targeted for attack by Al Qaeda but is faced with hostility from other agencies of the federal government, particularly from the CIA.
Tahar Rahim as Ali Soufan, a Muslim Lebanese-American FBI agent on John O'Neill's I-49 counterterrorism squad who eventually becomes his protégé. He is infuriated by the perversion of Islam by enemies of the United States and goes so far as to go undercover in terrorists' gathering spaces, in order to hunt Al Qaeda and prevent attacks.
Wrenn Schmidt as Diane Marsh, a CIA analyst who works under Martin Schmidt. Similar to Schmidt, she believes that the CIA is uniquely positioned to combat terrorist attacks and therefore decides to conceal information from the FBI. The character is based on at least three people within the CIA including Alfreda Frances Bikowsky.[2]
Bill Camp as Robert Chesney, an FBI veteran in New York's counterterrorism unit. About to retire, he uses his skills at interrogation to extract important intelligence from suspects in the struggle against terrorist threats. Chesney has been described as the most composited of all the main characters with Soufan commenting that he is "at least four people."[2]
Louis Cancelmi as Vince Stuart, an FBI agent embedded into CIA's Alec Station. His assignment imposes the responsibility of making sure that the FBI receives all the same intelligence the CIA does. His presence at the CIA is met with severe distrust. The character is based on FBI agent Mark Rossini.[2]
Virginia Kull as Kathy Shaughnessy, an FBI agent in the I-49 counterterrorism squad who works closely with Floyd Bennet.
Ella Rae Peck as Heather, a special education teacher from Ohio who begins to see Soufan. Their dates are constantly being interrupted by his work for the FBI. She finds the secretive nature of his job a difficult obstacle to overcome in their relationship.
Sullivan Jones as Floyd Bennet, an FBI agent in the I-49 counterterrorism squad who works closely with Kathy Shaughnessy. He is a former member of the New York State Police SWAT Team.
Michael Stuhlbarg as Richard Clarke, the National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Counterterrorism and the chief counterterrorism adviser on the United States National Security Council.
Peter Sarsgaard as Martin Schmidt, the chief of "Alec Station", a section of the CIA Counterterrorism Center. Schmidt butts heads with O'Neill after deciding to withhold information from him believing that the CIA is the only agency prepared to combat potential terrorist threats. The character is based on former CIA Officer Michael Scheuer.[2]

tag: ul

text: Recurring[edit]

text:
Katie Flahive as Amy, a CIA analyst working in Alec Station.
Jenny Paul as Maureen, a CIA analyst working in Alec Station.
Erica Cho as Leigh, a CIA analyst working in Alec Station.
Jamie Neumann as Toni-Ann Marino, an FBI agent in O’Neill’s I-49 counterterrorism squad.
Tawfeek Barhom as Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of five hijackers of American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon as part of the September 11 attacks.
Samer Bisharat as Khallad, a Yemeni terrorist that helped in the preparation of the 1998 East Africa Embassy bombings and the USS Cole bombing and acted as a bodyguard to Osama bin Laden.
Annie Parisse as Liz, a collegiate English professor with whom O'Neill is having an affair in New York.
Nasser Faris as Ayman al-Zawahiri, one of the co-founders of al-Qaeda.
Sharon Washington as Judith, a CIA analyst working in Alec Station.
Michael Quinlan as General O'Keefe
Ken Arnold as General Stetson
Jordan Lage as Mr. Kearns, one of ten commissioners overseeing the 9/11 Commission in 2002.
Kimberly S. Fairbanks as Ms. McCabe, one of ten commissioners overseeing the 9/11 Commission in 2002.
July Namir as Hoda Hada, the wife of Khalid al-Mihdhar.
Ibrahim Renno as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the leader of al-Qaeda's propaganda operations and the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks.
Nebras Jamali as Nawaf al-Hazmi, one of five hijackers of American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon as part of the September 11 attacks.
Craig Wroe as Leonard Bliss, the CIA chief of the Near East Division and superior of Schmidt and Marsh.
Jill Dalton as Beverly
Alec Baldwin as George Tenet, the Director of Central Intelligence for the CIA.
Yul Vazquez as Jason Sanchez, the assistant director of the FBI in the New York office and superior of O'Neill.
Youssef Berouain as Mohamad al-Owhali, an al-Qaeda member who took part in the 1998 United States embassy bombings.
Katie Finneran as Sheri, a woman with whom O'Neill is having an affair in Washington, D.C.
Mohamad Ashraf as Walla
Ayman Samman as Anas al-Liby, a computer specialist for al-Qaeda who takes part in the 1998 United States embassy bombings.
Zaki Youssef as Abu Jandal, a Yemeni member of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
Tasha Lawrence as Maria O’Neill, John's wife and the mother of his two daughters.
Ashley Leyva as Willa O'Neill, John's daughter
Angelina Leyva as Celia O'Neill, John's daughter
Jennifer Ehle as Barbara Bodine, U.S. ambassador to Yemen. She comes to dislike O'Neill, reports him to his superiors at the FBI, and has him expelled from Yemen.
Zafer El-Abedin as Mohamed Atta, an Egyptian hijacker and one of the ringleaders of the September 11 attacks. He served as the hijacker-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11 and crashed the plane into the North Tower of the World Trade Center as part of the coordinated attacks.
Joe Corrigall as John Chihoyne, an agent of the CIA stationed in Yemen.
Eisa Davis as Condoleezza Rice, U.S. National Security Advisor to President George W. Bush.
Ali Suliman as General Qamish, a Yemeni general that aids O'Neill and Soufan's investigation into the USS Cole bombing in Yemen.
Sami Karim as Omar al-Bayoumi, an agent of the Saudi Government who befriends al-Hazmi and al-Mihdhar.

text: Guest[edit]

text:
C. J. Wilson as John Miller, a reporter for ABC News that conducts an interview with Osama bin Laden in the Hindu Kush of Afghanistan.
Vincent Ebrahim as Wadih el-Hage, an al-Qaeda member who acted as secretary for Osama bin Laden and who took part in the 1998 United States embassy bombings.
Wendy Mae Brown as April Brightsky Ray, the wife of Wadih el-Hage.
Jennifer Dundas as Mary Jo White, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Barbara Rosenblat as Elaine Kaufman, the owner of the Manhattan restaurant Elaine's that O'Neill frequently eats at.
Tony Curran as Barry James, an inspector in the Metropolitan Police Service at Scotland Yard in London, England.
Osh Ghanimah as Abu Hamsa al-Masri
Nayef Rashed as Ahmed al-Hada, an al-Qaeda operative who acted as their "switchboard" host.
Robert Vincent Smith as Cardinal James Hickey, an American Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and the Archbishop of Washington, D.C. He performed John and Maria O'Neill's marriage ceremony and John goes to see him about getting it annulled.
Nezar Alderazi as Jamal Ahmad Mohammad Al Badawi, a Yemeni who helps plan the attack on the USS Cole.
Bijan Daneshmand as Farouq Osman
Donald Sage Mackay as Commander Kirk Lippold, the Commanding Officer of the USS Cole.
Stewart Steinberg as Larry Silverstein, the founder of Silverstein Properties that has leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority. He hires O'Neill as head of security at the World Trade Center following his retirement from the FBI.

text: Episodes[edit]

text:
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date1"Now it Begins..."Alex GibneyStory by : Dan Futterman, Alex Gibney, & Lawrence Wright Teleplay by : Dan FuttermanFebruary 28, 2018 (2018-02-28)
FBI agent Ali Soufan is asked to join John O'Neill's counterterrorism unit known as "I-49". As the squad fights to get information out of the CIA, two American embassies are bombed.
2"Losing My Religion"John DahlStory by : Dan Futterman, Alex Gibney, & Lawrence Wright Teleplay by : Dan FuttermanFebruary 28, 2018 (2018-02-28)
Following the concurrent embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, the FBI begins to investigate in Africa while the CIA begins to devise a plan to strike back.
3"Mistakes Were Made"John DahlBash DoranFebruary 28, 2018 (2018-02-28)
4"Mercury"Ali SelimAdam RappMarch 7, 2018 (2018-03-07)
5"Y2K"Ali SelimShannon HoustonMarch 14, 2018 (2018-03-14)
6"Boys at War"Michael SlovisDan FuttermanMarch 21, 2018 (2018-03-21)
7"The General"Michael SlovisAli SelimMarch 28, 2018 (2018-03-28)
8"A Very Special Relationship"Craig ZiskBash DoranApril 4, 2018 (2018-04-04)
9"Tuesday"Craig ZiskAdam RappApril 11, 2018 (2018-04-11)
10"9/11"Craig ZiskDan Futterman & Ali SelimApril 18, 2018 (2018-04-18)
Following the terrorist attacks on September 11th, various members of O'Neill's squad try to get in contact with him. Meanwhile, Soufan is finally given access to Abu Jandal and begins to interrogate him to confirm that al-Qaeda was behind the attacks.

text: Production[edit]

text: Development[edit]

text: The project emanated from Ali Soufan and Lawrence Wright's realization that both of them were fielding offers from various studios and production companies regarding the rights to their books about the lead-up to the September 11th terrorist attacks. The pair met with filmmaker Alex Gibney, who had already adapted Wright's one-man show, My Trip to Al-Qaeda, and Going Clear for HBO. Wright described the collaboration with Gibney saying, "He’s a documentarian, and he understands the importance of truth. We’ve been in the trenches. I came to trust him, and that’s what I wanted — someone I felt could handle and negotiate these really difficult moral questions." Following that partnership, the team began to interview potential showrunners. They soon landed on screenwriter Dan Futterman after one meeting, and then decided to work on their pitch for the series.[3] After refining their pitch, they approached HBO, Netflix and Amazon with the project. As a courtesy, they also reached out to Hulu without really placing them into consideration due to the perception of the streaming service as merely a place to stream episodes of network television shows. However, during their meeting with Hulu they were offered a straight-to-series order, an abbreviated development process, a promise not to cave under pressure from the federal agencies portrayed in the series, and the largest financial commitment of any service or network they had previously met with. It was due to these terms and conditions that the producers ultimately decided to sign with the company.[4]

text: During pre-production, producers spent months doing exhaustive homework. This involved interviewing the real-life counterparts of the characters they were bringing to life, including Ali Soufan and his wife; former National Security Council chief counterterrorism adviser Richard Clarke; former and current members of the FBI’s I-49 squad; and former members of the CIA.[5] Futterman has mentioned that in addition to adapting Wright's book, the series also drew from Soufan's book The Black Banners: The Inside Story of 9/11 and the War Against al-Qaeda and the 9/11 Commission Report.[6]

text: In September 2016, Hulu ordered The Looming Tower to series from Legendary Television with executive producers including Alex Gibney, Dan Futterman, and Lawrence Wright. It was announced that the limited series would consist of ten episodes and premiere in 2017.[7] It was later reported that Craig Zisk was also an executive producer for the series and would be directing as well.[8] Ultimately, five different directors were chosen to helm the series' ten episodes: Zisk, Michael Slovis, John Dahl, Ali Selim and Alex Gibney. The show's first episode was directed by Gibney, episodes six and seven were directed by Slovis, and episodes eight, nine, and ten were directed by Zisk. The series' story requires multiple international locations with the first five episodes having scenes that are set in seven countries and ten cities. Early on in the development process, Zisk and Gibney went on several international location scouting missions, in order to give their fellow directors options to pick from for filming.[9]

text: Casting[edit]

text: In January 2017, it was announced that Tahar Rahim was cast in one of the series' lead roles as Ali Soufan.[10] In February 2017, Michael Stuhlbarg and Bill Camp were announced as series regulars and cast as Richard Clarke and Robert Chesney, respectively.[11] In March 2017, Jeff Daniels was cast as John O’Neill.[12] Also announced that month were the castings of Sullivan Jones, Virginia Kull, Louis Cancelmi, Peter Sarsgaard, and Wrenn Schmidt as series regulars and Ella Rae Peck as a guest.[13][14][15] In May 2017, Alec Baldwin was cast as George Tenet in a guest role.[16]

text: After being cast as the late O’Neill, Jeff Daniels struggled on how to approach playing the role. He ultimately credits significant research he did involving speaking with those who knew O'Neill. At one point, he spent an evening at a bar in Lower Manhattan with ten of O’Neill’s colleagues, who’d worked with him for years. He commented, "I had a great meeting with those guys, walked out to the corner, turned to get a cab and there’s the World Trade Center. To feel him, you need the spirit of what John is fighting for."[5]

text: Filming[edit]

text: The series began filming on May 3, 2017 in New York City[16] and it was expected that shooting would take place in a number of locations around the world.[17] Ultimately, the production lasted six months and sprawled across three continents and six countries.[5] Various places stood-in for the locales in which the story actually took place. For instance, scenes set in Yemen were filmed in Morocco, and drone and car travel shots of Pakistani landscapes were used to evoke Afghanistan. Johannesburg, South Africa served as the production base, and was where the bulk of filming took place. The city possessed the "visual variety" that the producers were seeking, and doubled for various places including Nairobi, Tanzania, England, Albania, and Las Vegas, Nevada.[9] While there was an initial push to shoot the production all in South Africa, Zisk argued for filming the back half in Morocco. In August 2017, filming took place at the River Café in Brooklyn.[9]

text: Production designer Lester Cohen credits Wright’s and Gibney’s list of contacts and the production's research team for allowing him to gather the material needed to recreate various settings. During the design period, a set dresser shared photos of his tour in Afghanistan and an art coordinator’s daughter dove into the newspaper archives in Nairobi to help re-create the bombing site of the 1998 embassy attacks. Those details informed the design of the huge rubble pile that shut down the central business district in Cape Town for weeks. Also, as much of the story that takes place in the United States occurs in offices, practical sets were built, including Alec Station and the FBI office in New York.[5]

text: Release[edit]

text: Marketing[edit]

text: On December 19, 2017, Hulu released the first preview of the series through a collection of images and a "first-look" video featuring interviews with the cast and crew.[18] On January 11, 2018, Hulu released the first official trailer for the series.[19]

text: Premiere[edit]

text: On February 13, 2018, The Washington Post held a screening of the first episode. Following the screening, journalist David Ignatius moderated a question-and-answer session with Jeff Daniels, Tahar Rahim, Peter Sarsgaard and Wrenn Schmidt, Dan Futterman, Alex Gibney, Lawrence Wright, and Ali Soufan.[20][21]

text: On February 15, 2018, the series had its official premiere at The Paris Theatre in New York City.[22] On February 20, 2018, the series held its international premiere during the annual Berlin International Film Festival at the Zoo Palast cinema in Berlin.[23][24]

text: On February 27, 2018, the LBJ Presidential Library held a screening of the first episode. Following the screening, LBJ Foundation president Mark K. Updegrove moderated a question-and-answer session with Lawrence Wright, Michael Stuhlbarg and Ali Soufan.[25] On May 1, 2018, episodes one and two were screened during the Series Mania Festival at the Le Majestic cinema in Lille, France. It appeared alongside seven other television programs in the festival's "Best of USA" series of shows.[26][27]

text: Distribution[edit]

text: In all regions outside the United States, the series is distributed by Amazon Video.[28] The series premiered on March 1, 2018, in the United Kingdom and subsequent episodes were released weekly for the following seven weeks.[29] In Germany and Austria, the series premiered on March 9, 2018.[30]

text: Home media[edit]

text: The Looming Tower will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on September 18, 2018. The set includes four behind-the-scenes featurettes and audio commentaries on the premiere and finale episodes.[31]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Critical response[edit]

text: The Looming Tower was met with a positive response from critics. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds a 94% approval rating with an average rating of 7.59 out of 10 based on 48 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Well-acted and powerfully written, The Looming Tower delivers gripping counter-terrorism drama rendered even more soberingly effective through its roots in real-life events."[32] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 74 out of 100 based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[33]

text: The Washington Post's Hank Stuever praised the show for its "coolly fascinating pace and tenor" and that "Tahar Rahim gives a smart and sincere performance as Ali Soufan, a Muslim American agent on O’Neill’s squad."[34] The Hollywood Reporter's Daniel Fienberg offered the series praise saying, "The Looming Tower demands a hasty combination of faith in the storytellers and half-forgotten knowledge of the history. Absent that, the series is essentially like a well-shot, brilliantly cast, fast-moving season of Homeland, which is better than the actual current season of Homeland."[35] In a positive review, Variety's Maureen Ryan said that the show was an "accessible, illuminating series that does not downplay the petty and tragic elements of the tale."[36] Time's Daniel D'Addario commended the show as "a series that’s both gripping and relevant. It succeeds, with a project that restages the years before Sept. 11 and tells a darkly ironic story about the fecklessness of government."[37] In a more negative review, Collider's Chris Cabin criticized the series calling it "a middling act of didacticism, an attempt to pass off facts as insight and characters as little more than the sum of their intellect. Rather than tracing the complicated personalities and ludicrous dick-measuring contests that led to Al-Qaeda carrying out the biggest terrorist attack in American history, Gibney, Wright, and the rest of the creative team boil down the personal drama to little more than a series of arguments and discussions in offices at varying volumes."[38]

text: Awards and nominations[edit]

text:
Award

Category

Nominee(s)

Result

Ref.

70th Primetime Emmy Awards

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Jeff Daniels

Pending

[39]

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Michael Stuhlbarg

Pending

Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series, Movie or Dramatic Special

Craig Zisk (for "9/11")

Pending

70th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards

Outstanding Casting for a Limited Series, Movie or Special

Avy Kaufman, Leo Davis, Lissy Holm, and Moonyeenn Lee

Pending

text: Potential sequel[edit]

text: It has been reported that if the limited series proves to be successful enough, that a sequel series could possibly be ordered. Early discussions among the producers have begun, with their concept revolving around the birth of the Muslim Brotherhood.[5]