Oh my god, The X Factor is a fix! No sh*t Sherlock!

What the hell did you expect? After loads of speculation that the reality show’s star is fading and that viewing figures have dramatically dropped since last year, it’s to be expected that producers would have to pull out the stops for the first live shows of this year. And with stiff competition from BBC rivals Strictly Come Dancing, who’ve secured big name stars this year including 2 Olympians, a bit of controversy is just what the doctor ordered! 

Let’s just skip the actual singing part (which was really boring and full of naff, predictable and cliché song choices) and get right down to the vote off. In the bottom two were Rylan Clark, whose remixed rendition of Spandau Ballet’s ‘Gold’ was actually quite entertaining and Carolynne Poole, who apparently did a country version of Nicki Minaj’s 'Starships'- but I missed this because I went to make a cup of tea. Now, unless you’ve been on another planet (or you just don’t watch The X Factor) you’ll know that Rylan has been receiving a lot of stick over the fact he is still in the competition (because he can’t actually sing) and also that Carolynne is a perfectly good singer who just missed out on the live shows last year.

Judgement day: Rylan and Carolynne

 So bearing this and their final ‘sing-off’ performances in mind, when it came down to Louis, who had the deciding vote (and was also the judge who eliminated Carolynne from the competition the previous year), it should have been a straight forward bye-bye to Rylan, right? Wrong! Cue the drama and controversy:

• Louis ‘toing’ and ‘froing’ apparently facing the hardest decision of his life (even though he goes through this same sh*t every year
• Dermot shouting at Louis to hurry up and choos
• Nicole and Gary both urging Louis to save their acts
• Tulisa hounding Louis to just pick one while Louis pulls his hair out in anguis
• A silent, unknown figure crouching down to have a quiet word in Louis ear
• Louis then saving Carolynne, but immediately changing his mind and taking it to deadlock
• The gasps of horror when Dermot reveals that it was in fact Carolynne who got the lowest number of votes and will be going home
• The boos from the crowd as a shocked Rylan hugs a distraught Carolynne
• An outraged Gary storming off stage

My oh my! You see, it’s not me making it exciting, this actually happened and that is EXACTLY what the producers wanted. All last night and throughout the day, it wasn’t strictly that everyone was tweeting about, it was The X Factor. Everyone was declaring- it’s The Fix Factor! And they are probably right.  Don’t you see people, the x factor is no longer just a singing competition, it’s an entertainment show. It relies on outlandish characters, controversies, name-changes, romances and scandal to keep it alive. No longer are the days when raw singing talent are enough to satiate the ever demanding audiences- that’s what The Voice is for, and look how that compared. We must learn to accept that the X Factor has lost its sparkle and is in reality Eastenders with music and make-over’s. So let’s stop debating, stop arguing, stop voting (coz you’re wasting your time and money) and sit back and enjoy the ride, or as they like to say; the ‘emotional rollercoaster’.

Who would you have saved? Take a look at their performances below:

Welcome to 2012!

Happy New Year! And what a year 2011 has been! From all the X Factor scandals to the super-injunction sensation, celeb breakups and hook-ups, births, deaths and TV tantrums, 2012 has a lot to live up to!

Mum's the word

 And kicking us off in the New Year is none other than the talented Peaches Geldof who it was announced today is up the duff. The 22- year old boomtown brat is expecting her first child with fiancé Thomas Cohen, whom she became engaged to late last year. It seems that Peaches is taking marriage seriously this time around after her last marriage to a scruffy looking bloke named Max Drummey only lasted 6 months, that coming after only a 10 day romance. She recently said that ‘we don't want to get married for a couple of years yet.’ Very sensible Peaches. Their spokesperson has stated that ‘Peaches is utterly thrilled and they have the full support of both of their families who are equally excited for the baby's arrival.’ Looks like wild child Peaches has finally grown up.

Waltzing away!

 Meanwhile singer Alesha Dixon sparked controversy by sensationally quitting Strictly Come Dancing and allegedly jumping ship to Britain’s Got Talent! Knowing all the rivalry between the BBC’s and ITV’s two major shows (Strictly and X Factor), Alesha must have known the move will ruffle a few feathers, especially the furor surrounding her getting the job in the first place! Perhaps it’s the lure of the mega pay packet  she’s expected to get or perhaps by getting close to Simon Cowell (who’s apparently back on the panel) she thinks her fledgling music career will receive a much needed boost, either way her decision has raised a few eyebrows. As expected, the race for who will replace her is on with names such as Kara Tointon, Miranda Hart and even Arlene Phillips being bandied about.  Whoever does get the job, they should be sure to watch out for Bruno Tonioli and those flailing arms of his!

In other news, there’s drama with Sarah Harding as it is emerged that she was involved in a domestic violence dispute with her boyfriend who she met in rehab. In what sounds like a horrific ordeal, Sarah told a tabloid newspaper how Theo De Vries ‘grabbed me by my hair — throwing my head on the floor’. But it appears that the Lancashire lass gave as good as she got as she described how ‘He was smacking my head on the floor. He bit my ear. And when I kicked him to try and get him off me, I got his nose and he was bleeding.’ Let’s just hope Sarah’s problems get resolved as soon as possible.

Over in Hollywood there are marriages and divorces galore as Justin Timberlake popped the question to Jessica Biel whilst Russell Brand served poor Katy Perry with divorce papers!  Phew! Celebland never fails to keep us entertained.

Stay tuned for the first reality TV shows of the year; Celebrity Big Brother and Dancing on Ice. Plus look out for my Letter of the Week where each week I address a certain celeb and tell them exactly what I think!

Hope you enjoy! 

Niomi xxx