A BRACKNELL girl who has reached the semi-finals of a hit BBC One singing contest has said she is "living her dream" every week on the show. 

Singer-songwriter Heather Cameron-Hayes has been lighting up stages for years in local music contests and is a regular performer at South Hill Park arts centre, but has now found fame in the fifth series of Saturday night singing competition The Voice. 

The 17-year-old lives in Winkfield Row and says she was shocked to even make it past the producers, let alone make it all the way to the semi-finals, set to be broadcast live this Saturday night. 

Speaking to the News after Saturday's quarter-final show, Heather said: "It's a very strange feeling. I wasn't as nervous on Saturday as I normally am, nerves are something that have got in the way of my performance in the past but I managed to 'unnervousness' myself on Saturday, if that's even a word.

Bracknell News:

Heather Cameron-Hayes lives in Winkfield Row, Bracknell

She added: "It was an absolute shock to get through. I always told myself if I don't get through on the fast pass [when the judges put contestants through straight away] then that would be it but everyone has been so supportive and to know people have voted for me is incredible."

Wellington College student Heather is on 'Team Paloma', being coached by popstar Paloma Faith who she says is "incredible" to work with. 

She will join seven other contestants on the stage this Saturday to fight for a coveted spot in the finals after a gruelling 11 weeks of auditions, singing battles and public votes. 

Heather added: "Paloma is incredible. As a person, as a coach, she gives us so much help. Sometimes you forget that she's actually Paloma Faith, you'll be talking to her like a friend and then it hits you that you're sitting in a car with Paloma Faith talking about the semi-finals of The Voice.

"I'm very much living my dream."

"People do think because I'm young that I can't have been performing for that long but I have been doing it since for a long as I've been singing.

"I was very cynical when I applied for the show. I didn't event expect to be called back for the blind auditions in front of the judges, that was a shock. To reach the semi-finals is just surreal."

The Voice will air on BBC One this Saturday at 7pm.