Today's trip into the Advertiser's archives takes us back 10 years to a 'Helensburgh's Got Talent' competition held at the Victoria Halls to raise awareness of the 'Choose Life' mental health campaign.

Here's how we reported on the show in the Advertiser on January 29, 2009...

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A TEAM of talented youngsters burst onto the stage in the Victoria Halls recently and wowed a large audience of their peers.

The second Helensburgh’s Got Talent competition final was attended by more than 200 young people, who not only enjoyed the performances by the competitors but also a dramatic performance by actress Jenny Wainwright and her university friends Julia Easton, Laura Begley, Paul Dundas and Kerry Dandie.

Organised by Backchat Youth Group, Helensburgh’s Got Talent is a show with a serious ChooseLife message and just before the half time break Jenny and her team of actors staged Crestfallen, a mime piece written and directed by Jenny who works for Backchat.

Crestfallen highlights the issues around suicide and had a powerful impact on the young audience.

Youth mental health worker Craig McInally had the unenviable task of following all the fabulous acts with a 10-minute talk on the subject of suicide but he had the audience enthralled.

One of the organising team said: “You could have heard a pin drop!”

The show itself featured 10 dazzling acts from two age groups and the winners chosen by the judging panel - Craig McInally, Jo Dennett and Stuart Isaacs - were singer Hazel Simpson, who was also last year’s winning act, in the 18 to 25 age group and drumming duo Craig Wilson and Mark Dobbie in the 14-18 age group.

Other acts were hip hop dancers from the Margaret Rose School of Dance, singer Imogen Lorimer Hill, street dance team Burgh Jumpers, singers Caitlin McParland and Sian O’Hare, hip hop dancers Dance it Out, cheerleaders the Delux Dazzlers, Highland dancers from the Margaret Rose School and solo hip hop dancer Danielle Barr.

During the evening youth workers and Backchat team members were on hand to give advice and local MoD police officers were also in attendance.