Love them or hate them, TV talent shows sell. Long before the conception of shows like ‘X Factor’, ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ and ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, families have communed on the sofa to watch, cheer on and even vote for their favourite acts. Shows like ‘Opportunity Knocks’ and ‘New Faces’ were reported to give new talent an opening into the performing industry. Of course, style aside, the modern shows have a lot in common with their classic counterparts: image and back story rule the roost, pushing contestants to greater success. The judges are the stars of the show – grab attention from them with a good yarn and you’re on to a winner.

But can TV look past the story? Can it recognise and nurture the talent within, regardless of initial image? One show has a format which may just do that. ‘The Voice’ is an American show, which has branched out to Ireland and is soon to have a UK version. Based on Dutch Show ‘The Voice Of Holland’, it gives contestants a chance to work their way through a singing competition to win a record deal. Unlike it’s contemporaries, the show features an initial ‘blind audition’, in which judges cannot see the contestant and must judge them on voice alone. The show has had good ratings in America, and is set to rival it’s long-running competitor, ‘American Idol’.

So can TV cast aside image and back-story in favour of raw talent? It’s hard to say: only the initial rounds in ‘The Voice’ work under this ‘ears only’ format. Once contestants are revealed to the judges, the show follows a similar format to it’s peers. However, it’s nice to see some new ideas come to the board – ideas which could help to spruce up a genre of television with a format which has been around for decades. The real question is one of longevity: how will this new breed of ‘heard and not seen’ competition winners fare against the veterans of ‘X Factor’ and ‘American Idol’ in years to come?