Britain's got boring

Pol Pot singing Nessun Dorma? Now, that really would be a must-see. Firstly, he'd have to rise from the grave (an achievement matched only in showbiz by Bob Monkhouse's apparent ability to be funnier dead than alive), and secondly, whatever you think about his politics, the act would at least be different.

Paul Potts, on the other hand, is just another media-manufactured 'ringtones to riches' personality. His voice is OK, but if you're ever queuing outside Madame Tussaud's in London and hear the warbles wafting across the street from the Royal Academy of Music, you'll hear better.

His story is good: mobile phone salesman to celebrity singer, we like that. But he might as well have been a hairdresser, a lollipop lady or a stuttering sixth-former. We've all seen this formula before.

Absolutely the worst aspect of this phenomenon, however, is its one trick ponyness which is, frankly, driving me potty.

Pavarotti has already done Nessun Dorma to death, so much so that it's been top of Classic FM's most whistled for decades. And boy, can Pavarotti sing. In an operatic context, the aria lives on. But in the bastardised world of 'pop-classical', other performances inevitably sound no better than a broken karaoke machine.

'Nessun Dorma' translates as 'Let no one sleep', of which there is no danger when Port Talbot's Paul is screaming down the telly. I really do wish the chap well, but I can't help thinking that if he cared so much about music, he'd have had the balls to sing something else. Becuase not only is he a pale imitation of Luicano Pavarotti, he's also a pale imitation of Russell Watson.

Working class nobody struggles against the odds to sing Nessun Dorma repeatedly on television? Yep, the media's told that story before. Frankly, what's different about Paul Potts? Answer: nothing.

No doubt, PP can make a fortune singing on floating stages and in football stadiums. But if I'm not mistaken, his ambition was to be an opera singer. Unfortunately, the world of opera doesn't drop everything to accommodate celebrity. Roles are earned through hard graft, years of training and talent.

All the signs are that Paul Potts' career will be a lot more Madame Tussaud's than Madame Butterfly. I do hope he proves me wrong.