Danyl Johnson opened the show singing ’Relight My Fire’.  I expected this song to be a bit of a task for Danyl as it’s quite up-tempo, but he made light work of it and even threw some shapes in the process.  For his second song, he came back as what Cheryl described as: “the Danyl that we first fell in love with back in the audition process” with ‘Your Song’.

Then it was Lloyd Daniels’ turn.  This week he sang ‘Million Love Songs’ and ‘I’m Still Standing’, both of which, I thought, were a tad off-key.  Simon thought that Lloyd’s second performance was like: “something from an armature dramatic production”.  Oh dear!

Next up was Olly Murs.  He Sang ‘Love Ain’t Here Anymore’ and ‘Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)’.  Out of the two songs, I thought Olly made a better job of the second one.  When talking about his second performance, Dannii said: “You’ve got that sparkle in your eye – that song was absolutely made for you”.

Joe McElderry was next, singing ‘Could It Be Magic’ and ‘Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word’.  For me, both of Joe’s performances on Saturday were amazing, the guy always seems to deliver.  After Joe’s second song, Simon said: “I’m absolutely gob smacked by that”.

Finally, Stacey Solomon sang ‘Rule The World’ and ‘Something About The Way You Look Tonight’.  I loved Stacey’s performances too, but preferred the first one slightly more.  Louis told her: “You don’t believe how good you are – you are a really good singer”.

The Results

This week, two big American artist were making their X Factor debuts – Alicia Keys…

…and Rihanna.

After those amazing performances, we found out that Lloyd had received the least votes from the public and had to leave the competition.

Wow – what a final four we have now.  I can’t wait to see what next week’s semi-final brings!

Ciao for now!

Lloyd Daniels was up first, singing ‘Faith’.  Despite having a new haircut this week, once again I wasn’t wowed by Lloyd’s performance, but it was alright.  Simon was surprised, saying: “That wasn’t bad at all actually”.

Stacey Solomon was next, singing ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’.  Miss Solomon is doing her bit for the girls and I thought she did a great job this week.  Cheryl told Stacey that she needs to start believing that she can win.

Then it was Jedward’s turn, with their version of ‘I’m Your Man’ (with an added bit of rapping in the middle of course.)  For me, this performance was just as bizarre as the rest!  Dannii was ‘totally confused’ as their singing was in time, but the wrapping wasn’t.  Dannii, I don’t think it was just you who was baffled by it all!

Up next was Danyl Johnson singing ‘Careless Whisper’.  I thought he was really good this week and put his own unique twist on the song.  Louis said: “You’re a great singer, but I think you’re trying too hard”.

Olly Murs sang ‘Fast Love’ this week.  It was nice to see him doing an up-tempo number for a change.  Cheryl commended Olly saying: “You always come out and deliver”.

Joe McElderry closed the show with ‘Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me’ and received a standing ovation from the judges.  Louis got his rule book out again saying that this wasn’t a George Michael song.  Yes it is Louis!

The Results

On Sunday, we were treated to performances from Mariah Carey… (This video is from her GMTV performance, but you get the gist!)

and Susan Boyle.

This week, Olly and Jedward were in the bottom two this week and (dare I say to the relief of most of the nation), Jedward were given the boot.

Next week, the final five will have their work cut out, as they’ll be singing two songs each – I can’t wait!

Ciao for now!

Jamie Archer took to the stage first, with his rendition of ‘Radio Gaga’.  Once again, I thought he made the whole thing look effortless, Dannii thought that although he rocked the crowd – he didn’t perform to his full potential.

Lloyd Daniels was next, singing ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’.  I wasn’t that blown away by Lloyd’s performance, but Simon felt that he was starting to lighten up and thought he was better than last week.

Next up was Olly Murs, who sang ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’.  Despite breaking his finger this week, Olly didn’t seem to be phased by it and I enjoyed his performance.  Louis compared him to Robbie Williams, Gary Barlow and Will Young, adding: “I think you’ve got it all”. 

After his rather musical-like performance last week, Joe McElderry sang ‘Somebody To Love’, which I think is one of the hardest Queen songs to sing.  He made a great job of it though, but Louis felt that the choir in Joe’s performance ‘helped’ him.  This caused Simon to mock Louis, which was highly entertaining.

Then it was time for the return of John and Edward, who sang ‘Under Pressure/Ice Ice Baby’.  I thought they did alright with this song, although their rapping seemed to be a tad out of time in certain parts.  However, Cheryl congratulated them on making the most of this opportunity (in other words, enjoy it while it lasts!)  Calvin Harris also stormed the stage during their performance – only on X Factor eh?!

Stacey Solomon was next up, singing ‘Who Wants To Live Forever’.  I must confess, I’d never heard this song before Saturday, but thought that Stacey hit all the right notes.  Simon said: “That was, by a mile, the best performance of the night so far”.

Danyl Johnson closed this week’s show with ‘We Are The Champions’.  In his VT, Danyl worried about being perceived as cocky or arrogant during his performance.  Louis reassured him by saying: “There’s nothing wrong with being arrogant and confident at all, if you’ve got the talent to back it up, and tonight – you proved that you’ve got it all”.

The Results

On Sunday, we were treated to great performances from Shakira…

…and the 12 X Factor finalists who are releasing ‘You Are Not Alone’ to raise funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital.

After that, the results were in.  We saw Lloyd and Jamie in the bottom two this week, and the result of that was another shocker – Jamie was gone.

And, as if that wasn’t enough, next week we will be in the presence of two divas – Mariah Carey and Susan Boyle!  Can’t wait!

Ciao for now!

Stacey Solomon was up first, singing ‘Son of a Preacher Man’ from the soundtrack to Pulp Fiction, and I thought that she really came into her own this week.  Simon compared Stacey’s performance to ‘eating Chinese food’ and still being hungry afterwards, to this she replied: “I felt good.”  Chinese food?  What’s that all about?!  You tell him Stacey!

Olly Murs was next, singing ‘Twist and Shout’ from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.  I also thought that Olly did well this week, although a small part of me would like to see him do something different from a jazzy number at some point.  Louis enjoyed the majority of Olly’s performance but added: “I wasn’t crazy about the silly dancing”.  Me neither, but apparently it’s in the film.

After being in the bottom two last week, Lloyd Daniels came back singing ‘Stand By Me’ from the film of the same name.  Despite the fact that he sang Sean Kingston’s version, I thought Lloyd did pretty well.  Dannii noticed that he had a tuning problem during his performance, but on the whole thought it was ‘nice’.

Jamie Archer was next and I was worried for him once more this week because Simon had changed his song again.  He was originally going to sing ‘Unchained Melody’ by U2, but thankfully his song was changed to ‘Crying’ by Roy Orbison, which was in a film called Gummo.  It was nice to see Jamie sing a ballad and put a rock slant on it, rather than sing a pure rock song.  Cheryl said: “Simon did you well changing the song because I think ‘Unchained Melody’ would have been absolutely disastrous for you”.  I agree!

Next was Lucie Jones, singing a song from Camp Rock called ‘This is Me’.  I’ve never seen this film, but thought the song sounded very autobiographical for Lucie.  Louis and Simon thought that this performance made her a strong competitor in the competition.

Then it was the turn of Danyl Johnson, who sang ‘Purple Rain’ from the film of the same name.  Danyl was back on form  this week and had a new haircut to match.  Dannii enjoyed the performance, but admitted she doesn’t like it when Danyl screams.  No – screaming is never good!

John and Edward were next up with the theme to the film ‘Ghostbusters’.  It sure was a visual spectacle and something you  would expect to see on a kids’ TV show.  Simon described their performance as ‘sort of good’.  Yeah – I’d go with that.

Joe McElderry closed the show with the song ‘Circle of Life’ from The Lion King.  I thought Joe’s performance was a tad on the theatrical side, but good at the same time.  Dannii thought along the same lines and described his performance as ‘Les Mis mixed with Lion King’.

Blimey – don’t think I’ve ever seen so many films in such a short space of time!

The Results

On Sunday, after great performances from The Black Eyed Peas…

…and Leona Lewis…

…it was time for the most shocking bottom two result yet.  Lucie ended up in the danger zone along with John and Edward.  Simon had the deciding vote amongst the judges and he sent the vote to deadlock.  It seemed that he had changed his tune about the twins and shockingly, Lucie received less votes than them from the public.

What did you think about this week’s result?  It’s going to take me a few days to come to terms with it all!

Ciao for now!

Joe McElderry was up first, singing ‘Don’t Stop Believin” by Journey.  I wasn’t too keen on Joe’s performance this week, purely because I didn’t think the rock style suited his voice.  And as for those dancers, what was that all about?!  Dannii thought his voice was exceptional and said he was an absolute star.  Shows how wrong I can be, eh?

Lucie Jones was next, with one of my mum’s all time favourite songs, ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’.  I thought that Lucie’s performance was great and brought out her younger, edgeier side.  Louis said: “You’re one of the most versatile, consistent and professional performers in this competition”. 

Then it was the turn of Danyl Johnson singing ’I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing’ and boy, was I worried for him this week.  I’ve been a huge fan of Danyl’s quirky performances in the past, but this week I thought he was a shadow of his former self.  Dannii thought that parts of his performance were out of tune, and I had to agree.  So, I think it’s safe to say that this week was one of Danyl’s ‘off weeks’.  Hopefully next week he’ll be back on track.

Now, after last week’s debacle of Simon picking a rock song on Big Band Week, you’d have thought the other judges would have learnt a lesson from it, right?  Well this week, Cheryl chose the song ‘I Kissed A Girl’ for Lloyd Daniels.  I felt this song was totally wrong for him and wouldn’t even class it as rock.  Although Simon wasn’t too keen on Lloyd’s performance, he thought it was “a million times better than last week”.  I think that’s a compliment coming from Simon!

Stacey Solomon was up next and she was finally given some movement!  I thought her version of ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ was really good and Cheryl agreed, but wants to see more personality coming from Stacey during her performances.  Good call, Mrs Cole.

Then it was the turn of soon-to-be rock legend, Jamie Archer.  I thought he seemed really comfortable on stage this week as he sang ‘Get Your Rocks Off’, not everyone agreed though.  Louis said: “There are a hundred guys singing what you do in pubs tonight, you’re like a Lenny Kravitz impersonator”.  Oh dear!

Rachel Adedeji was next, singing the U2 classic ‘One’.  Her performance was a lot more mellow than last week’s, but I still thought that she did a good job of it.  Simon thought that Rachel had turned into a clone of Dannii this week and Danni fought back saying that Rachel had tried to get her hair like his, but “there wasn’t enough hairspray!”  Touche, Miss Minogue!

It was then time for probably one of the most talked about groups in X Factor history – John and Edward.  They sang ‘We Will Rock You’, complete with fire and masses of guyliner.  Dannii said: “I do look forward to seeing you every week, but I’m not sure that I would look forward to hearing you on the radio”.  Well said, Dannii.

Last but not least was Olly Murs.  He sang ‘Come Together’ and exposed a bit of flesh in the process – whey!  Louis  was full of praise for Olly saying: “I think you’re in the final three”.  Bold words there, Louis, but I hope your prediction is right!

The Results

After truly rocking performances from Bon Jovi…

and the return of X Factor faves JLS…

…the results were in.  This week, Rachel and Lloyd faced elimination and the judges vote was sent to deadlock as they couldn’t make a decision.  The contestant with the fewest public votes was Rachel, meaning that we had to say goodbye to her.  After being in the bottom two for the third time, this girl had certainly been through the mill, but I hope it won’t be the last we see of Rachel.

Right I’m off to psych myself up for next week’s show but before I go, I must congratulate Cheryl for being number one in both the single and album charts – you go girl!

Ciao for now!

Olly Murs was up first singing ‘Bewitched’.  I was really impressed with Olly this week and thought the Big Band genre suited his style of singing.  It seems I wasn’t alone – Cheryl said: “It’s like you’re really coming into your own, each week you’re just growing that little bit more”.  So Olly might be 10 feet tall in next weeks show!

Little Lloyd Daniels sang ‘Fly Me To The Moon’ and threw in the added bonus of a backflip.  I thought Lloyd’s performance was a tad predictable (except for the backflip).  Simon’s critique of it was just genius, he said: “Doing a backflip and singing ’Fly Me To The Moon’ is like eating a sandwich while you’re swimming!”  Somebody give that man a comedy award!

Miss Frank were next, singing the song that made the judges want to put them together as a group at the auditions, ‘That’s Life’.  I enjoyed their performance, and thought the rap gave it a unique twist.  Dannii felt that the performance had put the girls ‘back in the race’ and the rest of the judges seemed to agree.

Rachel Adedeji seemed like she had been transformed this week when she came to the stage singing Beyonce’s version of ‘Proud Mary’.  With her new image and attitude, to me, Rachel seemed to be comfortable on the stage for the very first time.  Louis said: “I can’t understand why people don’t vote for you – you’re an amazing singer, you owned the stage, and I’m glad you got your confidence back”.  Me too!

Jamie Archer had a rather controversial song choice this week – ‘Angel Of Harlem’.  I was worried for Jamie when I heard that he’d only had 24 hours to learn the song because Simon wasn’t happy with the original choice, but I thought he pulled it off.  However, Louis thought that it was a bit of a cheat because the song isn’t usually played by a Big Band.  Cheryl also said that the performance didn’t excite her as much as last week’s.  Never mind, Jamie, at least they didn’t diss the fro!

Stacey Solomon was up next singing ‘When You Wish Upon A Star’.  As I’ve said before, I’m a big fan of Stacey’s, but I didn’t think this week’s performance was as good as her previous ones.  The tightness of her dress probably didn’t help!  Simon felt that she needs to learn some performance skills.  I agree, it would be nice to see Stacey move about a bit more but again, a loose fitting wardrobe would help with that!

Danyl Johnson sang ‘Feeling Good’ and I thought he was back on form this week.  The judges seemed to enjoy it too – Dannii thought his performance ‘was very good’.  So it’s straight to the top of the class for everyone’s favourite teacher.

Joe McElderry added a bit of Latin flavour to this week’s proceedings with Michael Buble’s version of ‘Sway’.  It was nice to see Joe having some fun on the stage and I liked his performance.  However, Simon gave it another one of his one line classics: “You’ve got about as much Latin flare as a dolphin”.  Where does he think these up?!

Lucie Jones was next singing Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘My Funny Valentine’.  I’d never really heard this song before, but thought that it showed off Lucie’s voice really well.  Louis said: “There was no tricks, there was no dancing, there was no dancers – you did the hardest thing, it was just you and the voice, and it was an incredible performance”.  So true, Louis.

Finally, bringing some more Latin flavour (if you can call it that) to the stage, were John and Edward who sang ‘She Bangs’.  I thought their performance was quite surreal, the audience seemed to think so too.  When referring to their singing, Simon said: “This is apalling”.  He obviously couldn’t think of a one liner for that one!

The Results

After stunning performances from Westlife…

…and Michael Buble…

…the results were in.  This week I thought it was the most shocking bottom two ever – Danyl Johnson and Miss Frank.  The judges couldn’t make a decision, so the vote went to deadlock and unfortunately, Miss Frank recieved the least votes from the public – a real shame.

It’s rock week next week gang and we have performaces from Bon Jovi and JLS to look forward too – so go and rip your jeans in preperation!

Ciao for now!

Lucie Jones was up first and in honour of this week’s special guest, Ms Houston, she sang ‘How Will I Know’.  For me, Lucie wasn’t that great this week, but then again, it’s only week two.  Simon felt that she ‘made an attempt to be younger’ and looked more like a pop star, but added that she would never be Whitney Houston.  Meow Mr Cowell!

Then it was the turn of Olly Murs, who sang a Tina Turner song that I’d never heard of until now – ‘Fool In Love’.  This was one of my favourite performances of the night.  Cheyl thought it was the best performance he’d done so far.

Miss Frank were up next with their own version of Whitney’s ‘All The Man I Need’.  Again, for me this week, the girls weren’t on the same par as last week.  However, considering Louis was away, they can be forgiven.  Simon wasn’t in a very forgiving mood tough, saying: “I thought it was mainly terrible”.  I know it’s Diva Week, Simon, but there’s no need to take it quite so literally!

Then it was Rachel Adedeji’s turn.  After being in the bottom two last week, Cheryl thought that she came back fighting this week when she sang Beyonce’s ‘If I Were A Boy’.  I agree, Rachel was a lot better than last week, she just needs to bring her personality out a bit more.

Joe McElderry was next with another Whitney classic – ‘Where Do Broken Hearts Go’.  This was another of this week’s performances that I really enjoyed.  Simon said: “If you can sing like that at your age, you’ve got a great future ahead of you”.  Here, here, Simon!

There was some controversy surrounding Danyl Johnson’s performance last week.  This week, Simon took another big risk with him, by choosing a Whitney song that no one had ever heard before – ‘I Didn’t Know My Own Strength’ from her new album ‘I Look To You’.  This made me question Danyl’s chances this week, but he seemed to pull off another great performance.  Dannii thought it was flawless.

Lloyd Daniels was next to take to the stage with his version of Leona Lewis’ ‘Bleeding Love’.  I wasn’t keen on this at first but, the more I’ve listened to it, the more it’s grown on me.  Lloyd got a bit of stick from Simon, who said: “If I’m being honest with you, that song would have worked if it had lasted 15 seconds”.  This upset Cheryl, who started to cry, but Lloyd rushed over and gave her a hug – bless.

Just when you thought their performances couldn’t get anymore bizarre, John and Edward performed ‘Oops I Did I Again’ by the diva that is Britney Spears. They even did the talking bit in the middle of the song, which was weird to say the least.  Cheryl said: “I have to say, when it comes to a Saturday night, the act I’m always most looking forward to is you two”.  Awww, that’s nice!

Next was Rikki Loney, with the Aretha Franklin anthem ‘R.E.S.P.E.C.T’  I thought Rikki made a great job of this, but Dannii didn’t think so.  She said: “Vocally, it kicked in towards the end, so you’ve got to make sure that you grab us right from that opening line”.

Jamie Archer was next, putting his slant on Christina Aguilera’s ‘Hurt’.  This was another of my favourite performances from Saturday, Cheryl liked it too, saying that he made the song his own.

Last but not least was Stacey Solomon, singing Beyonce’s version of Etta James’ ‘At Last’.  Once again, I thought Stacey was fab and Cheryl agreed saying: “It sounded like you totally got into the zone”.

The Results

On Sunday’s show, after a great performance from Mrs Cole…

…and an equally great performance (which included a wardrobe malfunction) from Whitney Houston…

The results were in.  Despite a good performance this week, Rachel was back in the bottom two along with Rikki.  Simon had the deciding vote this week and it ended up that Rikki was sent home – I wasn’t expecting that one.

It’s Big Band Week next week, one of my favourite bits of X Factor.  Comments and views on this weeks antics would be very much appreciated.

Ciao for now!

Rachel Adedeji had the daunting task of opening the show.  She sang ‘Let Me Entertain You’, which was originally sang by this week’s special guest and mentor – Robbie Williams.  Simon said he thought that Rachel gave “a great performance”, which was confident and had good vocals.  However, he then morphed into Trinny and Susannah for a second and started criticising Rachel’s make-up! Maybe he could branch out into fashion?  I can see it now – Cowell’s Clothes!

Kandy Rain were up next with their take on Tina Turner’s version of ‘Addicted To Love’.  Those contraversial black outfits that the girls performed in caused quite a stir.  Cheryl said later that her comments about the ladies’ attire were only meant as constructive critism, but I can see where she was coming from.  Simon was left to play the nice guy for once, saying that he thought their performance was fun and he wished them the best of luck.

Next to perform was (the rather lovely) Olly Murs, who sang another of Robbie’s classics – ‘She’s The One’.  The Cockney Sparrow seemed a bit shakey at the start, but then he seemed to get into it and by the end, he had the performance in the bag.  Louis said: “You made the song your own, and I think you’re a talent”.  Here, here, Mr Walsh!

Rikki Loney sang ‘Back To Black’ next.  Having failed to impress the judges in previous years of The X Factor, Rikki’s confidence had obviously been knocked, and this didn’t go unnoticed by the judges.  Dannii said she felt that his confidence was at level one, but he could go to ten.

Everyone’s favourite Essex girl, Stacey Solomon followed and belted out her version of Coldplay’s ‘The Scientist’.  I’m a big Coldplay fan, and thought this was a risky song choice for the first week, but the gamble seemed to pay off.  Simon said: “What I love about you, Stacey, is that you have no idea how good you potentially could be”.  I think I’m going to be bold here and say that I’ll be suprised if Stacey doesn’t end up in the final stages.

Then it was the turn of judge-made band, Miss Frank, who sang ‘Who’s Loving You’ by The Jackson Five.  I really like these girls too and hope they’ll go far.  It seems Mrs Cole has a simillar view as she said: “I’ve got no qualms in saying you’re my favourite group”.

Jamie Archer was next singing ‘Get It On’.  He certainly put his own twist on the anthem, but Louis hoped that Jamie would show more versatility in the coming weeks.

Lloyd Daniels was next to perform and he came to the stage with Justin Timberlake’s ‘Cry Me A River’.  Not one of my favourite performances, but who am I to judge?  Simon thought he came across as “an authentic popstar”. See, that’s why he’s a judge and I’m not!

Then it was the turn of my dad’s favourite, Lucie Jones.  The Welsh Songbird sang ‘Footprints In The Sand’, a Leona Lewis track.  Louis declared: “I love Lucie!  We’ve found another great female singer from Wales.  You’re a natural born performer”.

John and Edward were next, with another of Mr Williams’ hits, ‘Rock DJ’.  These guys are like Marmite – you either love them, or hate them!  We knew what side of the fence Cheryl was on when she said: “You can’t sing – Fact!”

Then (thankfully), we were brought back to reality with Joe McElderry who sang ‘No Regrets’.  Simon thought the performance was “absolutely brilliant” and I for one have to agree.

Danyl Johnson closed the show with a contraversial song choice – Jennifer Hudson’s ‘And I Am Telling You’.  Dannii said: “If we’re to believe everything we read in the paper, maybe you didn’t need to change the gender referencing”.  She later apologised for these comments, saying no offence was meant by them and that Danyl knew they were meant in jest.

The Results

After amazing  performances from Alexandra Burke…

…and the return of Robbie Williams…

…the results were in.  Rachel and Kandy Rain were in the bottom two and the vote ended up going to deadlock.  Kandy Rain had the lowest amount of public votes, meaning that they were sent home.

Wow – what a first week!  Hopefully next week will be even better.  Comments and views on this weeks show would be much appreciated.

Ciao for now!

Keep on coming back and leave your comments too!

Ciao for now!