Susan Boyle Comes In Second

The world came to a sudden grinding halt last night as YouTube sensation Susan Boyle placed second in Simon Cowell's UK vaudeville-style production, "Britain's Got Talent". Dance troupe Diversity took the grand prize of £100,000 and will perform for Queen Elizabeth II at the Royal Variety Show later this year.

But all is not lost for the 48-year-old cat lady from Scotland. British papers estimate that the singing spinster could rake in from £6 to £8,000,000 (about $9.7 to $12.9 million) in recording contracts, concert tours, personal appearances and merchandising deals.

In the long run, Susan Boyle's shelf-life has been extended by another six months and her financial future seems secure. On the bright side, it would have been embarrassing if Boyle had shown up to sing for Queen Liz wearing the same dress from royal couturier "Frumpy's of London". (Seriously, she looked like ten pounds of potatoes in a five pound glittery sack last night.)

The buzz is that under the pressure of unrelenting press scrutiny, the blue-collar belle let the f-bomb drop a few times and the oh-so-proper Brits turned sour on her dulcet tones. There must not have been a soccer brawl sheduled that night.

Personally, I thought her original audition performance was amazing, but it's impossible to recapture the impact of the unexpected. Regardless, she has clearly won over the British and American public and will hopefully enjoy some measure of success like other Simon Cowell second-placers Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken and Jennifer Hudson.