BY JASON WRIGHT
Thousands and thousands of people applied and now just the best of the best remain. This Saturday sees the start of 2010 X Factor Live Finals. Ten weeks of hard-fought gruelling competition with a multi-million pound recording contract and celebrity status awaiting the eventual winner.
Last Sunday saw judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and the welcome returns of Dannii Minogue from maternity leave and Cheryl Cole, fully recovered from her life-threatening battle with malaria disease, choose twelve acts from the 32 remaining to advance through to the live finals. However, this year’s series will have a twist, something which won’t be revealed officially until the Saturday night itself. The mass rumour going around is each category will receive an extra act, known as a ‘wildcard’ and the first few weeks will see a spate of double (or maybe even triple) eliminations to ensure that the Grand Final Weekend, set to be on the 11th and 12th December, has at least three acts as usual.
Here is a brief look at the twelve acts that have definitely booked their places in the live shows. Bookmakers’ odds are supplied by William Hill (as of October 3).
The Boys – mentored by Dannii Minogue
Aiden Grimshaw
Unemployed from Manchester aged 18
Aiden’s first experience of performing was in a school production of Grease. After this, he began going to theatre school and started performing at weddings and function room parties at just 15. After delivering sensational performances throughout, he was an easy pick for the live shows. He will certainly get the girls vote, but whether he can continue impressing with his voice will be interesting to see.
Bookies odds: 8-1
Nicolo Festa
Student from London Italy
Nicolo is a big fan of the show, although his native Italy doesn’t do a show like this. So, he gave up his life abroad to come to Britain and contest. His musical influences range from rock bands to divas. Despite a poor performance at the judges’ houses stage, Dannii felt that she saw something in him that perhaps others wouldn’t. Will he be able to prove his doubters wrong?
Bookies odds: 16-1
Matt Cardle
Interior decorator from Essex , aged 27
Matt started singing when he was a child and formed a school band with his mates at the age of 16. He is a guitar professional, beginning to play at age eleven and has written over 100 songs just for that purpose. Away from his music, his other interest is DIY, being an expert interior decorator and painter. He ultimately dreams of swapping the paintbrush for microphone full-time and his ambition is to be the headline act at Glastonbury in the future.
Bookies odds: 11-4 favourite
The Girls – mentored by Cheryl Cole
Rebecca Ferguson
Single mother from Liverpool , aged 24
Rebecca is an unemployed mother from Liverpool. In her child life, she attended stage and dance schools and performed in holiday camps. She applied to participate in the show for the first two series but fell pregnant before both and had to pull out. After five years of raising two children, she has finally decided that she is ready for a challenge like this.
Bookies odds: 4-1
Katie Waissel
Receptionist from Harefield, North London , aged 24
Katie has been writing since the age of 14 and began playing at gigs across the country three years later. She likes jazz and swing music, so expect her to excel on Big Band week should she still be in the competition then and also has a soft spot for rock music as well. Her musical idols include Madonna and Queen. She is already under severe pressure having forgotten the lyrics TWICE in the early stages, any mistakes like that on live TV and it could be all over for her before it’s hardly begun. Will it work out?
Bookies odds: 20-1
Student from Malvern, Worcestershire, aged 17
At present, the youngest act left in the competition. Cher started singing through karaoke and since then has always dreamed of being a singing superstar. She is a huge fan of Cheryl Cole and this helps in being her mentor. Her superb audition immediately installed her as a favourite but at judges’ houses; a throat infection put her position in serious doubt. Cheryl decided to put her through nonetheless but with this is in mind and newspaper rumours circulating that she could struggle to cope with the pressure of the live shows, she has a huge lot of work to do to prove that she is talented enough to win.
Bookies odds: 6-1
The Over 28s – mentored by Louis Walsh
John Adeleye
Retirement home worker from London aged 30
John has always enjoyed singing and describes himself as a ‘self-taught singer’. He has been an experienced gospel choir singer for eight years, but quit to focus on being a private tutor for young and upcoming performers. At his job in a retirement home, he provides music and drama activities and often sings to the residents. His gospel experience unsurprisingly means he has a passion for soul music.
Bookies odds: 14-1
Storm Lee
Music producer from Edinburgh aged 37
Born as Lee Gardner, he left his Scottish hometown as a teen to relocate to the US. There he changed his name to Storm Lee and became a private music producer and has recorded backing for popular acts such as Meatloaf and Ozzy Osbourne. He returned home this year with the aim of becoming a music star on stage himself. Simon Cowell took an instant disliking to him, so you can tell this is another act of spite from mentor Louis, putting an act through that he knows his arch nemesis will hate.
Bookies odds: 16-1
Mary Byrne
Supermarket worker from Dublin aged 50
Mary has been working behind the tills at Tesco for several years now but always dreamt of becoming a famous singer. Away from her job, she performs in a cabaret act with her brother every month. She is a huge fan of the show but didn’t have the nerve to apply early on. However, she has finally learnt that at her age, this could be her last shot of fame and she has so far taken it by storm. Regardless of her quality, it was straight away a dead cert that she was going to end up here when Louis was revealed as her mentor. The bookies believe she is an outsider at the moment but she hopes to prove them very wrong.
Bookies odds: 20-1
The Groups – mentored by Simon Cowell
F.Y.D.
JORDAN GABRIEL, Customer service worker from London, aged 22
ALEX MURDOCH, Dance teacher from Sussex, aged 22
MATT NEWTON, Barman from London, aged 26
RYAN-LEE SEAGER, Student from London, aged 22
KALVIN LAMEY, Dance teacher from London, aged 25
F.Y.D. (short for For Your Direction) first met at dance class but never sung together until The X-Factor. After a shaky start, in which mentor Simon gave them a no at their first audition, they have vowed to improve and it has worked. Now can they continue moving forwards in the live finals? It’s a very big ask.
Bookies odds: 25-1 outsiders
Belle Amie
ESTHER CAMPBELL, Student from London, aged 17
SOPHIA WARDMAN, Student from Manchester, aged 23
GENEVA LANE, Student from Guildford, aged 20
REBECCA CREIGHTON, Unemployed from Dublin, aged 21
These four girls were a short handful of girls that were rejected as solo artists. However with the considerable lack of talent in the Groups category yet again; they received a lifeline through forming a group. They made a solid debut at judges’ houses and Simon made the wise decision to give them a proper chance. The show though is noticeable for the ‘Curse of the Girl Groups’, previous early favourites Hope (2007) and Miss Frank last year, flopped miserably, the former extremely lucky to reach the final five and in 2008, both the series girl groups, Bad Lashes and Girlband, were the first two acts to leave. It will have to take something special from this foursome to reverse the jinx.
Bookies odds: 16-1
1 Direction
NIALL HORAN, Student from Cardiff, aged 17
HARRY STYLES, Student from Cheshire, aged 16
ZAIN MALIK, Student from Bradford, aged 17
LIAM PAYNE, Student from Wolverhampton, aged 17
LOUIS TOMLINSON, Student from Doncaster, aged 18
Given their ages, this is a true boyband. Like Belle Amie, all five boys entered as soloists and were merged into a group at Bootcamp. One of the groups’ members, Liam, is an X-Factor veteran, having competed in 2008, being eliminated at the judges’ houses then. His elimination as a solo singer stunned many but relieved that he has been thrown a lifeline. If given the right material, expect to see them competing with Aiden for the teen girls support.
Bookies odds: 9-2
Wildcards?
The remaining twenty acts that were booted out of the competition will of course be hoping that this wildcard plan materialises. The rumoured situations are that either just one act is chosen out of the twenty to become the 13th finalist or each category gets another act. It is understood this is being introduced to ‘shake up the competition’. All will be formally revealed come Saturday night.
In the meantime, the final twelve for now once again has a fair mix of fan favourites and no-hopers, all with the same ambition nonetheless, to change their lives forever. This will be when we see who the judges, aside their own acts, label as their favourites. And everyone will also keeping a watching eye over them for the following, will Simon Cowell decide to wear a tie on a regular basis? How far will Cheryl and Dannii take with their fashion sense? And will Louis Walsh be writing up a new version of his seemingly now accustomed ‘Rule Book!’
I will be keeping up to date on the series, writing blogs for this week’s show as well as on weeks three, six, the semi-final and of course, the final.
The battle to win The X Factor 2010 begins Saturday at 7:40pm on ITV1 and ITV1 HD. Good luck to everyone contesting.
No comments:
Post a Comment