<P> The eighth series was won by boy band Collabro, with opera singer Lucy Kay finishing in second place and singing / rapping duo Bars and Melody in third place . During its broadcast, the series averaged around 9.8 million viewers . </P> <P> Following open auditions held the previous year between 19 October to 1 December 2013 in various cities, which included auditions held at a series of "Talent Spot tents" provided by the show's sponsor that year, and at The Savoy Hotel in Blackpool and The Old Ship Hotel in Brighton, the Judges' auditions took place between January and February 2014, within Belfast, London, Manchester, Birmingham, and Cardiff . For the first time since the second series, auditions didn't take place in Scotland, as the show's producers wished to try new locations for talent, which led to them opting to hold auditions within Northern Ireland for the first time as a result . Due to illness, Simon Cowell was forced to be absent from a day of auditions in Manchester to recover, leading to hosts Ant & Dec each standing in for him, while on the final day of auditions in London, Cowell was forced to be absent for them to attend to his girlfriend Lauren Silverman, who had gone into labour that day; the show's production team chose not to bring in a stand - in because of this . </P> <P> The eighth series is most notable in the show's history for the introduction of a new format that was slowly becoming a part of auditions within other shows of the Got Talent franchise, since it was first used on Germany's Got Talent - the "Golden Buzzer". During Judges' auditions, the judges' desk now featured a golden buzzer along with their respective standard buzzers, which both the judges and the show's host could each use only once if a participant's audition was outstanding to them, regardless of the opinions of the others - the participant would automatically move into the semi-finals, as a direct result of being given the golden buzzer . </P> <P> Of the participants that took part, forty - five made it past this stage and into the five live semi-finals - of these acts, salsa dancing duo Paddy & Nico, hip hop duo Bars & Melody, singer Christian Spridon, girl group REAformed, and stand - up comedian / impressionist Toju, each received a golden buzzer during their auditions - with nine appearing in each one, and eleven of these acts making it into the live final; the wildcard act chosen by the judges was impressionist Jon Clegg, after he lost out in the tied Judges' vote in the first semi-final . The following below lists the results of each participant's overall performance in this series: </P>

What's the meaning of the golden buzzer