Ashley Banjo grew up in Wickford, Essex where he caught the country's attention as the leader and choreographer of Diversity, a street dance act and victors of ITV1's Britain's Got Talent in May 2009.
HIGH PRAISE
Alongside his brother, Jordan, and the nine other members - aged between 12 and 25 - Banjo managed the mean feat of earning praise from Simon Cowell. After their finale performance, Cowell gushed: "It was sheer and utter perfection".
DANCING FAMILY
Banjo was raised surrounded by dance thanks to his mother's studio, Danceworks. And, in 2005, he formed Diversity, initially under the name Swift Moves. Their talent was recognised in 2007, when the crew won the Street Dance Weekend competition.
PREMIER PERFORMANCE
Since winning Britain's Got Talent, Banjo has barely paused for breath. On top of balancing his science studies at Queen Mary's College, he performed at Hyde Park's Wireless Festival and T4 on the Beach, both held in July. Diversity have also showcased their skills at the Disney XD launch and outside 10 Downing Street for Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
In December 2009, Ashley and Diversity entertained the Queen at the Royal Variety Performance, their Britain's Got Talent prize. Held at the Blackpool Opera House, they shared the stage with the likes of Lady GaGa, Bette Midler, Peter Kay, Michael Bublé and Lulu.
2010 will be a big year for Ash. Along with a high profile tour called Diversitoys he's creating a whole new set of fans as part of Sky1 HD's Got to Dance judging panel.
