SAM Kelly will be a familiar face to viewers who saw him reach the finals of 'Britain's Got Talent' in 2012.
 

Despite gaining a standing ovation and over 8 million views for his audition video, the Norfolk solo artist was beaten by a dancing dog.
 

Nonetheless, there were several record deals waiting for him at the end of the BGT rollercoaster – but Sam took the unusual step of going back to the small gig circuit.
 

“The fact that the show didn’t help my career as much as it could have done was a conscious decision,” he said.
 

“I had a lot of offers on the table afterwards that I let peter out because I didn’t feel ready as a musician to sign some big record deal or go on a huge tour.
 

“It all snowballed a bit suddenly and I thought ‘I’m not ready for this, I need a few more years working upwards’ – and unfortunately people weren’t prepared to wait that long.”
 

Undaunted, he has since been making a name for himself as one of the fastest-rising performers on the folk circuit and has been championed by some of Britain's top folk artists.
 

His love of folk can be traced to his Irish grandfather – Sam describes family get-togethers where each family member would be given an instrument and ‘make a hideous racket singing ‘Danny Boy’.”
 

Songwriting came to him as a teenager, although he admits his early attempts were ‘rubbish’.
 

“I would flick open a dictionary, pick a random word and write a song about it, but it would just be something like ‘insecure’ or ‘bucket’.”
 

Sam became a staple of the open mic scene while at university in Brighton and was playing guitar with a band in London when Simon Cowell came knocking.
 

“There wasn’t much of a thought process – I did an online audition and then spent the next half year in a trance.
 

“I had a great time – never again am I going to experience singing in front of 100 cameras, Simon Cowell and a screaming audience while being covered in makeup.
 

“I like to think if I can perform in that environment I can perform anywhere.”
He may have chosen to stay away from instant reality show fame, but Sam has garnered plenty of supporters.
 

His band The Sam Kelly Trio are currently in the studio for their second EP after a Kickstarter campaign to fund the recording raised almost double the £2,000 they asked for.
 

The trio will then spend the rest of the year gigging, which Sam explained, “is what we need - we’re going to keep growing as a band and plying our trade in front of audiences.”
 

The Sam Kelly Trio play at Zeffirellis, Ambleside on May 30.