She is 25/1 to go out of X Factor this week? I don't think so. Make that 500/1, Alexandra Burke is on fire!
If a female act doesn't win X Factor this year, I will quite literally eat my own feet. Any of a number of the women are potential winners, not least of all the magnificent Alexandra Burke. Her Big Band performance last week of Candy Man was simply brilliant.
A great Big Band song which I think you'll agree, suited her very well. Expect another great performance this week where Miss Burke will be in full Disco mode.
In a few weeks time, the X Factor competition is going to get extremely tight.
Tonight is Week 3 of the Live performances of X Factor 2008. This week is Big Band Week! So it could be a challenge for some. It will interesting to see how contest favourite, Diana Vickers' unique style is altered to fit in with this brand of music.
Who will be eliminated? Well, as usual that depends largely on the voting viewing public. Here is how the market assesses each acts chances of being voted out the show.
Daniel Evans 13/8 Ruth Lorenzo 11/4 Scott Bruton 7/2 Rachel Hylton 5/1 J L S 14/1 Eoghan Quigg 25/1 Austin Drage 33/1 Alexandra Burke 33/1 Laura White 50/1 Diana Vickers 50/1
Louis Walsh branded him a Ricky Gervais lookalike, but I'm sure that hasn't anything to do with Daniel Evans now being favourite to go out. Well mostly sure anyway.
Ruth Lorenzo featured in the bottom two last week, but her powerful voice should favour a Big backing band, so she could very well escape the sing off. I'm sensing we could have a shock result this week.
Louis will be praying that his last remaining act, JLS, stay in. If they go out,Mr Walsh would have lost all of his acts in the opening three weeks and will be ribbed by Simon Cowell possibly for eternity.
The X-Factor is only just into Week 3 of the Live performances and mentor Louis Walsh has already lost two of his group acts. First to go were Bad Lashes and in week 2, he then lost Girlband.
So... with the Week 3 performances happening this Saturday and Louis just having boy band JLS left, he perhaps needs all the help he can get. The situation seems hopeless, who can help?
Enter Ricky Gervais on the Graham Norton Show...
"... this is Graham Norton, big viewing figures, people who watch this love the X Factor, why do you think, your act should win?"
Oh dear. In fairness, JLS should survive this week at least to save Louis blushes, but it would surprising if they could progress much further.
Week 6 of the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing contest will see the remaining celebrities perform either the Paso Doble or the Viennese Waltz. It does not always reflect accurately on the Night, but here are the odds on who is favourite to be eliminated this Saturday.
Heather Small 2/1 Mark Foster 9/4 Andrew Castle 7/2 John Sergeant 4/1 Jodie Kidd 10/1 Lisa Snowdon 25/1 Christine Bleakley 25/1 Rachel Stevens 50/1 Cherie Lunghi 66/1 Tom Chambers 100/1 Austin Healey 100/1
You can pretty much draw a pencil line through John Sergeant. The public love him and will vote for him no matter what. Last week, 16 points (an average of 4 per Judge) was enough to see him through.
In the previous round, no celebrity who finished in the bottom three with the Judges, ended up in the bottom two overall. Taking this into account, it looks as if Heather Small may find herself in the dance-off for the third week running. She isn't the worst out there, and I think she can survive again at the detriment to either Mark Foster or Andrew Castle.
As the ITV's exciting 2008 X-Factor competition hit Week 2, it was Michael Jackson song night. The best performance wasn't from a Michael Jackson song though.
Talk about doing it when it really mattered. After the Public vote was announced in no particular order, Spanish diva Ruth Lorenzo found herself in the bottom two sing off with Louis Walsh's Girlband. Here was her response,
Wow!
After that Girlband didn't stand a chance. Incredible from Lorenzo. If anyone can threaten Cheryl Cole's category dominance of the contest then surely it must be Ruth Lorenzo.
Purple Rain, the performance of the Night in Week 2. It was unfair that Ruth was in the sing off, but if she hadn't have been, we never would have seen that fantastic performance. The standard on X-Factor in 2008 is extremely high.
And so, with the proper First live round complete, The 2008 X-Factor Competition is at last underway. Even at this early stage, it seems as if new mentor, Cheryl Cole is going to have easy victory on her hands. She has three of the best acts by far in the contest and is quoted at odds-on with the Bookies to get one of them the golden prize.
This year the mentors and their categories are as follows,
Simon Cowell - The Boys Cheryl Cole - The Girls Dannii Minogue - The Over 25's Louis Walsh - The Groups
The Groups this year are particularly poor in comparison and Louis hasn't got a hope in hell of winning this years X-Factor. Two of his acts, Bad Lashes and Girlband found themselves in the bottom 2 of week 1 and Bad Lashes were voted off. In a poor category, Bad Lashes were probably Louis' best act. It would not be surprising if he lost all his acts within 3 weeks, but... something strange may happen to keep one of them in of course.
Here is Bad Lashes last performance which saw them booted out.
I personally thought they were better than Girlband and deserved to be kept in. Their first performance was not atrocious by any means and it is very likely that they would have improved.
This Saturday it is Michael Jackson night. This should favour Louis' groups, in particular JLS, but one suspects Mr Walsh will end up one act lighter again.
The first week is complete and now we are into week 2, which sees the female contestants dance for the first time. Latest odds with WilliamHill to win the sixth series outright are,
Austin Healey 3/1
Tom Chambers 4/1 Rachel Stevens 4/1 Lisa Snowdon 8/1 Christine Bleakley 8/1 Mark Foster 10/1 Heather Small 14/1 Cherie Lunghi 16/1 Andrew Castle 16/1 Jodie Kidd 20/1 Jessie Wallace 25/1 Gillian Taylforth 33/1 Gary Rhodes 40/1 John Sergeant 50/1 Don Warrington 100/1
Austen Healy has become the new favourite after his first performance. Rachel Stevens still looks string at 4-1 and John Sergeant has moved in to 50-1 from 80-1 a few days ago. According to the market, Gillian Taylforth looks the most vulnerable of the women to go... but... who knows ?
Phil Daniels has become the first celebrity to be knocked out of this years Come Dancing Competition.
After the Judges votes yesterday, Daniels lay third from bottom and temporarily safe. Alas, when added to the votes of the British public, he slipped into the bottom two and was paired against Don Warrington in the dreaded dance off.
Gary Rhodes had originally placed last after the Judges vote, but found popularity with the voters (as often is the case with last placers) and leaped clear of the danger zone. This placed Eastend star, Daniels in an unenviable position.
After dancing again, Don Warrington was thought to be the better of the two, and survives to face week three where the men and women mix into the one competition. It was a close vote though, evens with the judges at 2-2, but Head Judge, Len Goodman had the final decision and halted Daniels progress.
Just how far can Gary Rhodes go? If he doesn't improve at all.. probably a long way. The public liked to be entertained and will often continually back an underdog.
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