New Brunswick man flies on Britain's Got Talent

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For the past few years, Duncan Murray has been performing stunts with a pogo stick in front of crowds at NBA games and NASCAR races.

But more recently, the 23-year-old New Brunswicker has been making waves in the United Kingdom.

Murray recently auditioned on the television show “Britain’s Got Talent,” flying all over the stage and over people, earning him a standing ovation and four straight “yes” votes from the judges, including notorious TV curmudgeon Simon Cowell.

Murray said he wasn’t surprised that he got the nod. He said he felt like he nailed the audition.

“Right after I was done, they all stood up and clapped, and I don’t think you get that kind of reaction unless they’re really for your performance,” said Murray. “Because of the winter in Canada, I hadn’t jumped for nearly three months. So when I went over to do the audition, I was really just kind of doing my best despite having nearly no practice or warm up, so that really scared me going into it.”

Originally from Burton, near Oromocto, Murray said he’s always been intrigued by extreme sports. When he graduated from high school in 2019, he bought an extreme pogo stick, which can send him flying more than 10 feet in the air.

After two years of practice and commitment, he decided to go pro, starting up the Duncan Pogo Show. Murray built up a large following on TikTok, garnering more than 400,000 subscribers, with his videos combining for more than 9 million likes.

“Being able to grow a following online and showcase the sport to so many people, and to go on “Britain’s Got Talent,” a huge stage, and huge platform, and show off the sport and get more eyes on it is really a great thing,” he said.

Murray’s audition, which was recently posted on YouTube, had more than 99,000 views as of Friday. Following his stunt, Cowell said, “that is what I call taking your two minutes and making it a moment.”

When he’s not performing for the masses, Murray is a third-year student at the University of New Brunswick, studying for a bachelor of sport and recreation degree with a minor in business.

Though Murray hasn’t yet posted much about his audition on social media, his family has been posting from back home.

“Even my old teachers from high school, and some people from the university are sharing it … I really feel seen back home now,” he said.