Alexandra Burke Stands In For Kelly On The X Factor

Alexandra Burke was the surprise stand-in for Kelly Rowland on The X Factor after the Destiny’s Child singer was struck down with a viral infection.

The show’s 2008 champ proved to be a harsh judge, even criticising Kelly’s own acts at times, notably when she told Sophie Habibis that she had “a few tuning issues” . At the end of the show Dermot O’Leary even joked that they’d run out of time because Alexandra hadn’t stopped talking.

The show’s theme was Halloween and one of the top performances came from girl group Little Mix, who changed their name from Rhythmix after a legal challenge. The ladies performed Katy Perry’s E.T. and, for the first time, had overwhelmingly positive comments from all four judges.

Misha Bryan and Craig Colton also did well; Gary Barlow gave his act a standing ovation and told the Liverpudlian that his performance of Adele’s Set Fire To The Rain was the best of the night. The Take That star was in a good mood – he also ran on stage to give Johnny Robinson a hug after his rendition of The Old Devil Called Love and announced: “Johnny, that’s it. It’s that simple! It’s all you needed to do.”

It was also the first outing of the new line-up of The Risk, after Ashley quit the group and Nu Vibe’s Ashford stepped in. They opened fright night with a cover of Thriller and received universal praise from the judges, with Gary evening likening their experience to Robbie Williams leaving Take That in 1995.