BBC series The Voice slammed by Sir Elton John

Sir Elton hit out at the 'nonentities' produced by the show. Picture: AFP/Getty

The veteran musician has often been a critic of TV talent shows in the past and has now blasted the poor track record of The Voice on both sides of the Atlantic. And Sir Elton said the contest – commissioned for a third series by the BBC – was more about the coaches than the contestants.

His comments come in the wake of last year’s winner Leanne Mitchell suffering a sales disaster with her debut album. It peaked at number 134 in the album charts after selling fewer than 1,000 copies in its first week. And the 2013 winner Andrea Begley only made it to number 30 in the charts at the weekend for her track My Immortal in the wake of her win.

Sir Elton said: “The Voice is all about watching the judges, it is in America. Nobody on The Voice in America has had a hit record. Nobody on The Voice in England has had a hit record – they’re nonentities.”

Asked whether he had ever watched a music talent show, he admitted: “Never have done.”

But he claimed many shows were fast-tracking people to fame who were not in a position to deal with it, and then moving on to the next wannabe.

Sir Elton said: “Television and video have done a lot of damage to music. They’ve propelled people into stardom that aren’t ready for it and it can’t sustain it.

“It breaks my heart to see people like Michelle McManus who won Pop Star, whatever it was, but it’s not fair.”