A gloomy hotel room in Wembley and two teeny chaps called John and Edward are balancing upside down on the heads of a couple of very thick-necked men called Alex and Doug. meanwhile, four pretty girls are doing rather complicated splits.
And, between them, two more chaps - both tanned, handsome and called Adam - are hoisting me high in the air with a 'one, two, three ... hang on ... take your hand out of my face... I can't see anything'.
Someone starts giggling and everything starts wobbling. Which is exactly when our earlier (and very animated) conversation about accidents pops back into my head. 'of course we've all been injured,' chirps teeny John.
Hot favourite: Spelbound are hoping to clinch the Britain's Got Talent crown in the final on Saturday
Hot favourite: Spelbound are hoping to clinch the Britain's Got Talent crown in the final on Saturday
'I dislocated my elbow, shattered a bone in my arm and nearly hit a main nerve in my arm. I was told I could have been paralysed, but that was back in 2005 and I'm all fine now - just a bit scarred,' he says, brandishing a jaggedy pink scar.
'And I almost broke my neck when I was 11,' adds Doug, cheerily. 'I did a somersault, cocked it up and came down on my neck with my legs over the top.
They rushed me off in an ambulance with one of those neck things on, just like on Casualty, so I thought it was all over.'
'Ooh yes, and I broke my elbow,' chips in one of the pretty girls, not to be outdone. 'Instead of bending that way, it bent the other way and just snapped. look, you can see where it came through the skin.'
And she's right. you can. Rather too clearly - stretching in thin white ridges down her forearm.
Perhaps I should explain. For a (blessedly) brief moment, I have become the 14th member of Spelbound - the 13-strong troupe of acrobatic gymnasts who have taken Britain's got Talent by storm with astonishing displays which include hurling each other up in the sky, turning 13-year-old Hollianne Wood into a human skipping rope and balancing on one hand on each others' heads, all accompanied by a very stern: 'Don't Try This At Home!'
Some of the cast of Spelbound are put through their paces on Britain's Got Talent
Some of the cast of Spelbound are put through their paces on Britain's Got Talent
Tonight, they will compete in the live final against nine other acts, including Chandi the amazing dancing dog and 81-year-old Janey Cutler, and are oddson favourites to win the £100,000 prize money and the chance to perform in front of the Queen at the Royal Variety Show this summer.
Which all sounds wonderfully glamorous and exciting.
But for now, reality is the stuffy hotel room where I am marvelling at the extraordinary fitness, courage and sacrifice required to produce the seemingly effortless twirls, spins, backflips, human pyramids and splits that make up their act. And staggered by their amazing bodies and commitment.
Because Spelbound - no, it's not a spelling mistake, the name's derived from Spelthorne gymnastics club, where they all met - are a different breed to the rest of us.
Aged between 12 and 25, they train for four-and-a-half hours a day, seven daysa-week, 50 weeks a year - getting up before dawn to squeeze in a 6.45am to 8.15am training slot before school or work and then back again in the evening, for another three hours before bed.
'We have a two-week holiday in August,' explains Doug Fordyce, 20. 'But when we get back we can really feel the difference - we're all slow and stodgy and it feels rubbish.'
Headmaster: Simon Cowell has his own suite on the BGT set
Headmaster: Simon Cowell has his own suite on the BGT set
Acrobatic gymnastics, or 'Acro', dates back to Roman times and involves five disciplines: mixed pairs, women's pairs, men's pairs, men's fours, women's trios - all performing on stage at the same time.
While many of us had never even heard of it until Spelbound popped up on this year's BGT, this lot have been training like Olympic athletes for as long as they can remember - Lianne, 18, was just two years old when she started.
Sadly, and much to their disgust, it is not yet an Olympic sport - unlike the parallel bars and the floor exercise - but there are Acro European Championships and Acro World Championships. And, believe it or not, great Britain's actually very good at it. As Alex puts it: 'If you go through all the medals we've won, we'll be here all day. The trouble is, no one seems to have any idea what we do, not even our mates.' or they didn't, until now.
In the past few weeks, more than 2.4 million people have been wowed by Spelbound's performance on YouTube - even though coach and ex-Acro World Champion Neil griffiths insists that it's 'all a bit tame' and lacks their usual danger levels thanks to boring old Health and Safety officials and a ceiling too low for teeny Edward's usual 35ft jump into the sky. on top of that, fanclubs are popping up and interview requests are pouring in from America's finest talkshow hosts.
The troupe are delighted with their newfound fame. The girls are suddenly all very blonde and heavily mascara'd and raving about Simon Cowell - 'He's a god, isn't he? A total god!'
And the men - particularly Doug and the two Adams - are sporting impressive tans courtesy of a local salon which offered free unlimited sunbeds after U.S. magazine Entertainment Weekly called them 'tasty but pasty', criticising their very white bodies.
'I've lost count of the number of sessions I've had,' says one of the Adams.
'He kept complaining he wasn't getting any browner,' laughs the other. 'But he wasn't shutting the lid properly.'
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After years of gruelling training they're lapping up the publicity. 'It's brilliant,' says Alex. 'loads of text messages and tons on Facebook. We're all loving it.' Apart from Edward, who is 18, 5ft 1in, sports a startling six-pack and isn't so sure.
First he attracted some rather embarrassing comments from BGT judge Amanda Holden about his impressive abdominal musculature. Then he received the troupe's first proper fan mail.
'It was a dodgy email: "Do you fancy meeting up for a coffee?"...from a male. No thanks!' he mutters as the rest of them fall about laughing and coach Neil starts getting twitchy.
'Hurry up - we need to get back to our training. We've got the World Championships to train for after this competition.'
Appallingly, despite their dedication and success on the international Acro stage, Spelbound receive no funding, grants, sponsorship, equipment, free physiotherapy, nutritional advice or even petrol money to get to and from training.
The younger members rely on their parents to pay the £200-a-month training fees, and the older ones work to makes ends meet. 'It's a catch 22 situation,' says Doug, who has an admin job at the local college. 'We have to work to fund our training, but then we struggle to find a job that's flexible enough to fit around the training.
'I have a fan on my desk that I put on maximum to keep me awake during the day...'
He's not joking. Beneath the excitement, they look knackered - all pink eyes, floppy heads and politely swallowed yawns. They're also starving, because food's a bit of an issue for gymnasts. The big ones (or 'bases') like Alex, Doug and the Adamses need to eat all the time to keep their strength up and, presumably, their thick necks from snapping when John and Edward twirl about on their heads.
While the little ones ( or 'tops') - Edward, John, Katie and Hollianne - have to rein in a bit, for the bases's sakes - 'We can really tell if they've been stuffing their faces.' It goes without saying that after training and school or work, there's barely any time left for friends, watching telly, going out or just lounging grumpily about like normal surly teenagers.
But they don't care one jot. Because they love Acro more than anything. Even Holliane, the human skipping rope, who adores being twirled round by her hands and feet while Edward jumps over her spinning body. Doesn't it rip her arms out or her sockets and leave her armpits aching? 'Nah, it's fine,' she beams. 'I really enjoy it.'
With all that training, surely they get a bit tetchy with each other?
'Ha ha ha! Just a bit! There are times when we're screaming at each other and tearing our hair out,' says Doug. 'We're like brothers and sisters in that way, so it's all very instant.'
And what about romance - has there been any, er, inter-acro love? After all, they're a very attractive bunch.
'Ooh no!' squeals Katie, one of the 'tops'. 'That'd be a bit like incest, wouldn't it?'
So finally, with the BGT final lurching towards them, will they be nervous? They look at me blankly.
You know, nervous ... worried something will go wrong?
Neil helps out: 'Without sounding pompous, this is very basic stuff. What we're doing isn't difficult for them. If only the staging was higher at the Royal Variety Performance and the flooring was better, we could really do some good stuff.'
And with that, they're off, scurrying towards their bright orange bus and another gruelling training session. It's now 5.30pm - they've been up since 5.45am and at it all day - and as they wave goodbye they couldn't look happier.
As I wave back, I am in awe of their talent and commitment. I am also absolutely delighted that I'm not an Acro Gymnast and quite sure I have seen enough scar tissue today to last me a lifetime.
A dancing dog, a bendy magician, an 81-year-old Scottish belter... the pick of the rest (by Nicole Lampert)
Tina and Chandi
Who? Dancing dog act Tina Humphrey, 37, from Shrewsbury, and Chandi, a Crufts champ (pictured) who Tina has been training for 11 years.
Worst moment: 2008 Britain's got Talent semifinalist Kate Nicholas ( who appeared with her dog gin) sniped: 'Chandi is a showbiz dog. What's unique about gin is that I taught her al l those tricks at home.'
Simon said: 'Chandi is one of the best dancing dogs that I've ever seen.'
Odds: 5/1.
Twist & Pulse
Janey Cutler
WThe other contenders: Twist and Pulse and Janey Cutler are also hoping to win the BGT title
Tobias Mead
Who? Bendy dancer who does magic tricks. The 22-year- old from Wiltshire has performed with Take That and the Nolans.
Worst moment: Fell out with his father and his brothers when he gave up a promising football career.
Simon said: 'Every so often, someone comes along who is just brilliant ... you're super, super-talented.'
Odds: 20/1.
Connected
Who? Boyband from manches ter : twins Conor and miles Ryan, 13, brothers Harry, 13, and Max Mondryk, 15, and Matt Fitzgerald, 12. The boys met at a drama school and have been a group for four months.
Worst moment: Simon Cowell said their look was '15 years out of date'.
Piers said: 'I'm an expert in first stages of boybands and I think we've got something quite good here.'
Odds: 20/1.
Paul Burling
Who? Old-school impersonator. The 41-year-old from Bristol was 'discovered' by Robbie Williams's dad, cabaret singer Pete Conway, who performed with him for years.
Worst moment: Failing to make the semifinals in 2007.
Amanda said: ' I just think after schlepping it around holiday camps for the past 25 years ... we've been able to find you.'
Christopher Stone
Who? Jug-eared, shy 28-year-old singer from Yorkshire. His parents sold their house to fund him through music school, but after failing auditions he became an accountant.
Worst moment: Almost being overcome by terrible nerves.
Simon said: 'The issue with you is your lack of conviction and lack of self-belief ... I happen to think that you've got a really, really good voice.'
Odds: 6/1.
Twist and pulse
Who? Glen Murphy (Pulse), 16, and Ashley Glazebrooke (Twist), 18, from South London (pictured). They describe their nerdy comedy dance as 'streetomedy'.
Worst moment: Semi-finalists Peridot - with whom they previously danced - said: 'Ashley and Glen are trying to act like they are new to it all, but in fact they have been dancing in these groups for years.'
Simon said: 'There's still a lot of room for improvement from them,.'
Odds: 16/1.
Janey Cutler
Who? The 81-year-old Scottish great- grandmother Janey (pictured) is popular in village halls and started singing when she was 50. She has inevitably been dubbed the ' new Susan Boyle', like SuBo she has a huge YouTube fanbase.
Worst moment: Her strong Scottish accent forced the producers to use to subtitles on Amer ican television.
Amanda said: 'I didn't expect a set of lungs like that!'
Odds: 25/1.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1284122/Can-Britains-Got-Talent-favourites-caught-leave-Spelbound.html#ixzz0pwUus1Of
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