The X Factor UK

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thank you!




it was this video I watched that made me realise how fucked up X factor, and all the shows previous to it, Pop Idol (the original, that I loved and watched). I knew it had become a extreme version of what it started off as, and there was some 'fakery. But hearing these stories, and how they set people up for failure/ridicule is disgusting. Does anyone have anymore insight/ or experience with this vile circus show?
edited: formatting / grammar
 
Phoenix Lazarus said:
This was definitely one of the most memorable X-Factor auditions. She sadly committed suicide last year.



www.thesun.co.uk

X Factor star found dead with knife wound to neck aged 38, inquest hears

TRAGIC X Factor star Ariel Burdett was found dead with a stab wound to her neck, an inquest heard today. Ariel – whose real name was Amy – was found dead at her home in Leeds aged 38 on…
www.thesun.co.uk www.thesun.co.uk
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That’s so sad - I can remember her audition but didn’t know she had passed away.

violet.moon said:
thank you!




it was this video I watched that made me realise how fucked up X factor, and all the shows previous to it, Pop Idol (the original, that I loved and watched). I knew it had become a extreme version of what it started off as, and there was some 'fakery. But hearing these stories, and how they set people up for failure/ridicule is disgusting. Does anyone have anymore insight/ or experience with this vile circus show?
edited: formatting / grammar
Click to expand...

I watched this not long ago and can’t believe it. How sad for her. You can just see the realisation in her eyes when she works out what has happened.
 
There’s a girl I’ve followed(ish) on SM for a few years called Kelsey Ellison who was known in the jpop/Kpop cover community. She released a YouTube video years ago about how bad her treatment was. No time to rehearse, told to sing in Korean and then criticised for it. She managed to have most of her footage pulled.
 
calmyourritas said:
That’s so sad - I can remember her audition but didn’t know she had passed away.


I watched this not long ago and can’t believe it. How sad for her. You can just see the realisation in her eyes when she works out what has happened.
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it's so fucked up. I can't believe they really did that. I rewatched her audition, you can really see the truth. I know she freaked out, but when she says "you told me to sing a Pink song" and the confusion in her face. I don't blame her for being angry.
 
I’m going to watch that Zoe Alexander video. I was at the X Factor auditions in Manchester when Tulisa, Gary Barlow were judges - it’s so staged! Several contestants were told to stop while they re-filmed, change song etc. Audience told to wave, boo, clap before the judges come on. They film these bits and this what you see when they do audience cut aways when someone is singing. All staged.
 
Sunflower91 said:
There’s a girl I’ve followed(ish) on SM for a few years called Kelsey Ellison who was known in the jpop/Kpop cover community. She released a YouTube video years ago about how bad her treatment was. No time to rehearse, told to sing in Korean and then criticised for it. She managed to have most of her footage pulled.
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double post, sorry! I don't know how this show has managed to stay on tv for so long, they way they manipulate everyone. it's sick.
 
It is disgusting the way they are allowed to play with people's lives solely to make money for the already rich! As soon as they have wrung them out and not making pots of money from them anymore, they are discarded and the next money maker is brought out and it starts all over again....and again....and again.
 
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violet.moon said:
thank you!




it was this video I watched that made me realise how fucked up X factor, and all the shows previous to it, Pop Idol (the original, that I loved and watched). I knew it had become a extreme version of what it started off as, and there was some 'fakery. But hearing these stories, and how they set people up for failure/ridicule is disgusting. Does anyone have anymore insight/ or experience with this vile circus show?
edited: formatting / grammar
Click to expand...


calmyourritas said:
I watched this not long ago and can’t believe it. How sad for her. You can just see the realisation in her eyes when she works out what has happened.
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I've just watched that. It was very eye-opening. So was the second part, which I link below.

 
A thread on Zoe Alexander at the time of her audition: https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/1720598/that-p-nk-singer

Has anyone read Ben Elton’s “Chart Throb”? I think it was released round about season 2/3 of The X Factor and it opened my eyes a LOT to the manipulation of the show. Apparently Ben Elton hung around the making of the show whilst writing the book and then when it was released Simon was FURIOUS! 😂

My memorable X factor moments:

Shirlena Johnson who very obviously had some sort of mental health issues and was pulled from the show and alll footage cut despite being popular and making it to judges houses

The backlash when Laura got sent home over Ruth and it was discussed in the House of Commons!

When Dannii made a dig at school teacher Danyl sleeping with schoolboy Lloyd.

When Louis changed his vote to save Rylan from going home.

The horrible story surrounding Lucy in the hotel room and the covering up of it ☹️🤬

That older woman whose family criticised the show for building up her hopes by inviting her back every year to the auditions only to turn around and say no each time ☹

When Louis made Dannii cry because of a stolen song choice

The judges being HORRIBLE to Janet Devin, especially on the week where her grandad died and they didn’t give a tit and mocked her.

This thread is a real eye opener too:https://forums.digitalspy.com/discu...-under-the-bus-the-most-by-x-factor-producers
 
HockyRorror said:
A thread on Zoe Alexander at the time of her audition: https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/1720598/that-p-nk-singer

Has anyone read Ben Elton’s “Chart Throb”? I think it was released round about season 2/3 of The X Factor and it opened my eyes a LOT to the manipulation of the show. Apparently Ben Elton hung around the making of the show whilst writing the book and then when it was released Simon was FURIOUS! 😂

My memorable X factor moments:

Shirlena Johnson who very obviously had some sort of mental health issues and was pulled from the show and alll footage cut despite being popular and making it to judges houses

The backlash when Laura got sent home over Ruth and it was discussed in the House of Commons!

When Dannii made a dig at school teacher Danyl sleeping with schoolboy Lloyd.

When Louis changed his vote to save Rylan from going home.

The horrible story surrounding Lucy in the hotel room and the covering up of it ☹🤬

That older woman whose family criticised the show for building up her hopes by inviting her back every year to the auditions only to turn around and say no each time ☹

When Louis made Dannii cry because of a stolen song choice

The judges being HORRIBLE to Janet Devin, especially on the week where her grandad died and they didn’t give a tit and mocked her.

This thread is a real eye opener too:https://forums.digitalspy.com/discu...-under-the-bus-the-most-by-x-factor-producers
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Thankyou for my bedtime reading!
 
So glad this is a thread!
I was about 8/9 when the X Factor first came out, I loved it. Only over the past few years I’ve realised how corrupt it was.

I read on the Secret Celeb Gossip thread that it was revealed that Lucy Spraggan was sexually assaulted in a hotel room during her time on X Factor and was told to be quiet about it. That’s the reason she left the competition but it was reported at the time she left due to an “illness”. Horrific.
 
HockyRorror said:
A thread on Zoe Alexander at the time of her audition: https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/1720598/that-p-nk-singer

Has anyone read Ben Elton’s “Chart Throb”? I think it was released round about season 2/3 of The X Factor and it opened my eyes a LOT to the manipulation of the show. Apparently Ben Elton hung around the making of the show whilst writing the book and then when it was released Simon was FURIOUS! 😂

My memorable X factor moments:

Shirlena Johnson who very obviously had some sort of mental health issues and was pulled from the show and alll footage cut despite being popular and making it to judges houses

The backlash when Laura got sent home over Ruth and it was discussed in the House of Commons!

When Dannii made a dig at school teacher Danyl sleeping with schoolboy Lloyd.

When Louis changed his vote to save Rylan from going home.

The horrible story surrounding Lucy in the hotel room and the covering up of it ☹🤬

That older woman whose family criticised the show for building up her hopes by inviting her back every year to the auditions only to turn around and say no each time ☹

When Louis made Dannii cry because of a stolen song choice

The judges being HORRIBLE to Janet Devin, especially on the week where her grandad died and they didn’t give a tit and mocked her.

This thread is a real eye opener too:https://forums.digitalspy.com/discu...-under-the-bus-the-most-by-x-factor-producers
Click to expand...
Yes Rylan was definitely put on there for publicity! I said at the time that Rylans agent was in bed with Simon Cowell 😠. So fixed! See how that turned out 🙄😠
 
Steve Brookstein has plenty to say about the manipulation that went on in the Xfactor.
I've been to the auditions. When you watch it edited on TV it's very different. Six seat challenge is much more brutal watching it live. Also some singers were amazing at the auditions but didn't come across the same on TV. Also the other way round.
 
every time I think of the X Factor I think of Cerri Rees. It’s disgusting how they wouldn’t stop contacting her telling her to audition again. especially after they were told not to because she was vulnerable.
Unfortunately they got their way in the end and she auditioned for the 4th time.
Only to be humiliated yet again.
It’s appalling how some contestants have been treated on the X Factor.
 
JakeM said:
every time I think of the X Factor I think of Cerri Rees. It’s disgusting how they wouldn’t stop contacting her telling her to audition again. especially after they were told not to because she was vulnerable.
Unfortunately they got their way in the end and she auditioned for the 4th time.
Only to be humiliated yet again.
It’s appalling how some contestants have been treated on the X Factor.
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Yes, that’s the one I mentioned, I couldn’t remember her name. ☹️ From an article:

For them, Mrs Rees, from Bridgend, wasn’t just another deluded wannabe given a much-need reality check by the judges. Instead she was a vulnerable widow in need of help and support rather than ridicule before an audience of 11.5m viewers.

Her singing teacher Amanda Roberts yesterday said Mrs Rees was treated on the show as a “figure of fun”.

Ms Roberts said, “They pursued her – they sent her backing tapes, offered to put her up in a hotel and gave her free train tickets.

“I don’t really know if she went of her own free will or whether they enticed her on.

“But either way the X Factor producers and judges should hang their heads in shame – they are exploiting a frail and vulnerable lady.”

Mum-of-two Ms Roberts, 40, gave Mrs Rees free singing lessons after a third cringe-making appearance on the X Factor in 2008.

The pair became close friends and the singing teacher has been trying to protect Mrs Rees from the X Factor ever since.

Mrs Rees is said to have told a friend: “The X Factor kept ringing me and hounding me so in the end I just surrendered and went.”

Tone-deaf Mrs Rees, who was not at home yesterday, is said to have been in tears ever since the programme aired.

She weighed just five stone and had lost her teeth because of stress when she first appeared on the show in 2005. Her husband Clive had just died at the age of 53 of a sudden brain haemorrhage.
 
Really interested to hear peoples thoughts and opinions on this! I remember X factor starting when I was a teenager and loved it for about four / five series, I then got a bit bored and had started going out on the weekends and never bothered to catch up on it. My mum still watched it until the later series and I just remember thinking, how did this used to be the highlight of our Saturday night! It’s so repetitive, the same comments from the judges and you could see how they were manipulating the show to suit their narrative e.g Simon having a running joke about never wanting the bands, he got the bands and put 1D together, that was obviously all planned as they wanted to put together the perfect band re looks and voices so just picked a load of solo ones instead of using a boy band who had been together years!! Although I like 1D I just feel it shows it’s not an authentic show, the two bands who did amazing out of it were put together by the show!!

Also re the lady who sang pink, I’ve started watching her YouTube video on it and I 100% believe her. You can see the confusion on her face when she starts to say that they told her to sing pink!
 
Wanttoseethescreenshots said:
he got the bands and put 1D together, that was obviously all planned as they wanted to put together the perfect band re looks and voices so just picked a load of solo ones instead of using a boy band who had been together years!! Although I like 1D I just feel it shows it’s not an authentic show, the two bands who did amazing out of it were put together by the show!!
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They had already done the solo-acts-being-formed-to-make-a-band thing before One Direction, at least three times before, it just happened that 1D were the ones that struck gold with it and then Little Mix did too a few years later ... it doesn’t stop it being any less fake though, I agree :)
 
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