EXCLUSIVE: How a dirt poor 'bad boy' from a sleepy Moldovan town became a seedy Vegas stripper before wowing millions as BGT's daredevil sword-swallower

Britain's Got Talent's daredevil sword swallower Alexandr Magala is keeping a secret from his army of fans - his hidden life as a male stripper.

When he's not performing on the family-friendly talent show, the 26-year-old Soviet-born performer leads a more X-rated lifestyle, wooing all-female audiences and gay nightclubbers. 

Astonishing photos show Magala - a college dropout - on stage as a pole-dancing striptease artiste in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

The Moldovan stunned the BGT judges with his death-defying sword-swallowing act - which is considered too dangerous to be screened live. 

His nerve jangling performance on the ITV show's final tomorrow night must be pre-recorded in case he impales himself in front of an audience of millions.

Flamboyant: Britain's Got Talent daredevil Moldovan sword swoller Alex Magala who wowed the judges with his death-defying act has a second job as a stripper

Performances: While making a name for himself on the family-friendly talent show, Soviet-born Magala, 26,  performs for a very different crowd in the gay bars of Los Angeles and Las Vegas

Crowd favourite: The performer, who is nicknamed 'Bad Boy' in Moldova, revealed his life is 'like a movie'. He will perform in tomorrow night's Britain's Got Talent final on ITV in front of an audience of millions

Shocking: Magala wowed BGT judges Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and David Walliams with his daredevil act. But his performance is so dangerous it will have to be pre-recorded for the final in case he impales himself

But flamboyant Magala has come a long way from his sleepy hometown of Orhei, visited by MailOnline this week, a town of just 32,000 people that is traditionally known for wine and tobacco.

'My life is like a movie,' confessed Magala, who has earned the nickname 'Bad Boy' in his home country.

'Perhaps you've seen in films when a killer gets a text about his next victim. I have the same story. I receive the address of the club, the time and the colour of underwear. I arrive at the place: lights, music, fire.' 

Among his regular hangouts is the Abbey Gay Club in Hollywood, dubbed the best gay bar in the world.

He described how U.S. punters put dollar bills into his mini briefs during his performances, which he will do between three and five times a week.

'The biggest tip I get is a $100 bill. But it doesn't happen every day, it's normally at New Year or other big holidays. 

'Usually I immediately scream 'Jackpot!'

'But the difference compared with female strippers is huge,' he protested. 'Girls are simply begging for money. 

'Male strippers maintain their dignity, don't smile in a fake way and do not beg anyone. Money comes to us.'  

Nevertheless, he admitted, it's very common for him to show 'everything' during his performances.  

'Usually it's about that certain area, but you can do anything you want in striptease,' he told lifestyle website allfun.md.

Baby face: Magala has come a long way from his sleepy hometown of Orhei, a town of just 32,000 people that is traditionally known for wine and tobacco

Young performer: His family said as a little boy Alex was a 'naughty boy' who had boundless energy and was always doing things he wasn't allowed to

Young rebel: His grandmother Evgeniya Magala told the story of when, as a boy, she had told not to swim unsupervised in a local pond. She said: 'In the evening he came home, I asked 'did you swim?' He said, 'no!' then I touched his hair and it was wet, so he did swim'

Cheeky: Of her grandson Alex, Evgeniya said she still worries about him even now that he is 26 and performing on Britain's Got Talent in front of millions

Split: Alex's mother Svetlana, 47, and his father Viktor, 60, lived together in Orhei, Moldova, but the family was very poor and the couple eventually separated and divorced

'But charm is a fire that needs to burn in your eyes. If it's burning, then you're sort of hypnotising the victim and they're ready to give you all the cash. 

'Once there was a couple. I took the girl on stage and started dancing on her. Then her companion also climbed up there and started throwing money on us. A rain of money is a success.' 

Describing his first time stripping on stage, he said: 'I closed my eyes, held my breath and - forward! 

'I was wearing ripped denim like in the Britney Spears video.'

But while his life appears glamorous now, the Magalas struggled throughout his childhood to make ends meet and there were often rows and arguments at home.

'I was born in a small country, a poor country,' he continued.

'My family was poor. My childhood dream was to get a bicycle and I never got it. Everything that I achieved, I achieved by myself without any help. 

'I am here performing for people and I think it's totally legit. I have an impeccable reputation. I never drink, am never late. I work 100 per cent, hard.'

Performer: On his website, Alex said his parents failed to support his hobbies and so he did them in secret

Racy: Alex's mother Svetlana (pictured) left Moldova and is now living in New York where Alex lived and worked as a stripper in Las Vegas from 2011. He reached the quarter final of America's Got Talent in 2014

Family: Alex's uncle Yury, 57, (pictured with Alevtina Alex's grandmother) back in Moldova, said Alex's mother was 'shocked' when she was finally told about his career choice

Magala was raised in a close-knit family, but the family struggled financially and his parents divorced.

His mother Svetlana, who studied as an artist, is 47, moved to New York and remarried.

His father Viktor, 60, is now a businessman in St Petersburg. 

According to his Russian website, Magala's parents never supported him and whatever hobbies he had he did them secretly.

It also reveals he got 'unsatisfactory' grades at school, where he was 'popular' with girls, and that he 'loved fighting to stand up for his interests'. 

'Classmates told him that he'd be a loser when he grew up, which helped inspire Alex to prove they were wrong,' it reads. 

But it isn't only the BGT audience that was kept in the dark about Magala's double life.

His mother was 'shocked' when she was finally told about his career choice, according to Magala's maternal uncle Yury Busheuv, 57.

'His body shape improved, he looked like an athlete,' Yury told MailOnline.

'And then he moved to Chisinau [the capital of Moldova] and met guys who performed dangerous tricks and tried this sword-swallowing thing for the first time.

'Of course, he told nobody about it. When his parents heard, they were terrified. But what could they do about it? And he was progressing in it.'

He continued: 'I must say that Alex has always been a very determined boy. If he took up something, he had to finish it. 

'He is a true self-made man. We're often in touch with him. 

Drop out: Magala's website reveals he got 'unsatisfactory' grades at school, and that he 'loved fighting to stand up for his interests'

'Loser': 'Classmates told him that he'd be a loser when he grew up, which helped inspire Alex to prove they were wrong,' his website reads

Career: But his uncle Yury said Magala decided to become a dancer when he moved to Chisinau, the capital of Moldova, and met guys who performed dangerous tricks and tried sword-swallowing for the first time

Ripped: Of his sword swallowing, Yury added: 'Of course, he told nobody about it. When his parents heard, they were terrified. But what could they do about it? And he was progressing in it'

Determined: His uncle continued: 'I must say that Alex has always been a very determined boy. If he took up something, he had to finish it. He is a true self-made man. We're often in touch with him.

Stardom: Magala will take those skills he honed in those early days living with performers in Chisinau, Magala, and will take them with him into tomorrow night's Britain's Got Talent final in front of Simon Cowell

'Two years ago, when he came home and stayed with us here we went fishing.

'We have a lake here, it is our tradition. I saw that half of his arm was scratched to the point of bleeding, so I understood how often he has hard times in his work. He called it the hazards of the job.'  

Magala lives with his maternal grandmother Alevtina Bushueva, 83, a retired psychiatric doctor, in a fourth floor flat in a block built by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

'He started with break-dancing and he was walking on his head - God save us,' said his grandmother. I thought, okay, so he is young with lots of energy.

'But then he showed me his tricks with a sword and I was close to a heart attack. I am a trained doctor, I know exactly how dangerous it is. 

'I tried to explain it to him. I said 'Sashenka, you're putting your life at risk, please do anything else but don't swallow swords'. 

'Did he listen to me? No, but on the other hand life is dangerous anyway.

'Still when I watch his performance on TV, my heart shrinks. I know where the heart, stomach and throat are. 

'With his other granny, we tried to talk him out of it. But our grandson has made his choice. He decided what to do, so, fair enough, he is a grown up man.'

Magala's other grandmother Evgeniya Magala, 79, a retired nurse, told MailOnline: 'I worry about him, of course. But this is his choice of life and I try to respect his decision.'

He had been a 'naughty boy' in his childhood when he pretended to her he had not been swimming unsupervised in a local pond.

'I worried for him, he was so small and he went swimming alone with the boys,' she said.

'I asked them to be careful. In the evening he came home, I asked - 'did you swim?'. He said - 'no!' - then I touched his hair and it was wet, so he did swim.'

Magala's big break came in 2011, when he received a Green Card and relocated to America.  

But it was still not all plain-sailing.  

His website continues: 'In the art of sword swallowing, Alex tasted a lot of his own blood. This dangerous passion hurt him a lot of times from the inside. Sometimes he couldn't eat for days.

'And after all the pain and mistakes, he learned sword-swallowing in 100 days.

Showman: Magala's other grandmother Evgeniya Magala, 79, a retired nurse, told MailOnline: 'I worry about him, of course. But this is his choice of life and I try to respect his decision'

America: Magala moved to the US in 2011 where he worked as a stripper for both women and in gay nightclubs. He said punters would shove $100 bills into his underpants and he would show them everything

Display: In the US reached the quarter final of America's Got Talent and then went on to win the Russian version of the show in 2014. He is hoping to win the title in the UK on the ITV show tomorrow night

Glory: But Magala's sword swallowing act for the BGT live final will be pre-recorded 20 minutes earlier because it is considered too dangerous for a live audience in case something goes wrong

'After all the success he didn't stop but continued to practice more and more, and with all that hard work he moved his sword-swallowing act to a new level.

'By combining all his skills and putting his life on the edge, he created various sword tricks and acrobatic elements.' 

Before BGT, Magala claimed victory in 2014 Russia's Got Talent, was a finalist of Italy's Got Talent and reached the quarter-final of America's Got Talent.   

He also performed at the Winter Olympic Games Opening Ceremony in Sochi 2014.