X Factor

X Factor’s Judges Houses Guest Judges Are Revealed, And Actual Louis Tomlinson Is One Of Them

BEST NEWS EVER.

Friday, October 2, 2015 - 11:03

Hurrah, X Factor’s Judges Houses are back yet again this year, and even though we say it every series, the celebrity line-up for 2015 is the best ever.

And even though it’s bad news for Sinitta this time around (well, we wouldn’t be surprised if she still turned up) it’s AMAZING NEWS for anyone who happens to be a fan of a certain sassy One Direction member. AND WHO ISN’T?

That’s right, this year Simon Cowell is finally using a member of One Direction to help narrow down his Overs category, and it’s only bloody Louis Tomlinson.

And that’s not all, as it’s also been revealed that the two will be doing their judging in the South of France. FANCY.

So, what about the others, we hear you ask? Well, Rita Ora will be taking advice from All About That Bass star Meghan Trainor – who we think is the perfect candidate to pick some stars out of the Girls category.

And considering the contestants will be jetting off to LA to perform, we think they’ve lucked out massively.

Next up is Cheryl-Fernandez Versini, who is taking her Groups category to Rome for the big event.

But while she’s going to have a seriously tough time whittling down the insane talent, she’s recruited Jess Glynne to help her though it.

Finally, Nick Grimshaw has enlisted Mark Ronson to help him choose which singers from the Boys category he takes to the live shows, which is suitably amazing.

And their location of choice? Well, it’s Oldham in Manchester. Not quite LA, but hey, it’s Grimmy’s hometown, so hopefully that means his family pop up from time to time too.

WE ARE SO EXCITED.

- By Charlotte Warwick

The X Factor Stars: Where Are They Now?

We were obsessed with them at the time but where are our once-beloved The X Factor stars now? From Ben Haenow to One Direction find out who's playing with Beyoncé, who's playing on ferrys,and who Leon Jackson is.

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Steve Brookstein won the first series of The X Factor in 2004 and held the record for most votes received in a final, a whopping 6million, until Joe McElderry knocked him off the top spot. Sadly, from these glittering heights, the only way was down.

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Steve was dropped by Sony BMG just eight months after winning the show. In 2007 he was performing on the Portsmouth to Bilbao ferry and has since said that Simon Cowell "ruined Christmas" with the X Factor's winners' singles. Bitter much?

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Shayne Ward romped home to victory in Series 2. His winner's track, That's My Goal, was the third fastest selling single of all time in the UK, behind Elton John's Candle in the Wind and Will Green's Evergreen, but now we can't hum a single note.

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Shayne's now big news in knickers having strolled onto the cobbles of Coronation Street with his eye firmly set on Underworld in summer 2015. His music career's not too shabby either, his fourth album, Closer, went to number 17 the same year.

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Animal lover Leona Lewis became the first woman to win The X Factor in 2006. Her first album, Spirit, released in 2007, went an incredible 10 times platinum in the UK and has sold over 8million copies worldwide. Go Leona!

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Leona's sold more than 20million records worldwide, won an MTV video award and three World Music Awards. She wrote the theme tune to Avatar and in 2014 made her film acting début in Walking on Sunshine. Not bad going. Not bad going at all.

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Confession time: we don't remember Leon Jackson from 2007 at all, yet he stormed to victory in Series 4 of The X Factor. However, his career since has been simply spectacular...

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...spectacularly insignificant that is. Leon was dropped by Sony BMG after his first album sold a paltry 130,00 copies and he was last heard of co-writing with The Voice contestant Vince Kidd. Yeah, us neither. Sorry, Leon.

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Music's in Alexandra Burke's blood, her mum was the lead singer in Soul II Soul of Back To Life fame. And her musical heritage paid off when Alexandra became the second woman to win The X Factor in 2008.

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Alexandra's gorgeous version of Hallelujah was the biggest selling single of 2008. She returned to The X Factor as a guest judge in Series 8, the only contestant to ever do so, and in 2015 starred in the stage version of The Bodyguard.

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Did anyone think Joe McElderry would win The X Factor Series 6 in 2009? Our money was on Olly Murs or Stacey Solomon to be honest, both of whom have done better than Joe since, musically...

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...but Joe's the winner in other ways, quite literally. He took the crown in both Popstar to Operastar in 2011 and The Jump in 2014. He simply can't lose at reality TV! Now, if only we could get him a stint in the jungle or on Celeb Big Bro.

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We didn't predict Matt Cardle as the winner of Series 7 in 2010, as competition from Cher Lloyd, One Direction and ahem, Wagner, was fierce. But Matt and his hat won the day and single When We Collide sold more than 1million copies.

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Matt's still working in music, and in 2015 he took on the lead role in Memphis the musical. However, his success is at nothing compared to the undoubted winners of The X Factor series 7. Who do you think we could mean....?

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One Direction, of course! Back in 2010, Harry, Liam, Niall, Zayn and Louis auditioned for The X Factor but Simon Cowell didn't think they cut the mustard – alone. He formed them into a group and...

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...well, you know what happened next. MAGIC. Magic is what happened next.

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In 2011, Perry, Jesy, Jade and Leigh-Anne also walked into auditions for The X Factor as solo artists. Tulisa saw their potential but decided that the sum was greater than the parts, and Little Mix went on to be the first group to ever win the show.

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Tulisa's little muffins are huge on both sides of the Atlantic and are even producing some actual tunes. “Salute! Salute!” anyone? Don't mind if we do.

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James Arthur was another very unlikely looking popstar when he walked into The X Factor Series 9 auditions in 2012. But his down-to-earth charm, and a Cowell job on his gnashers, helped him take the crown.

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But just a year later, iTunes was offering to refund customers who'd bought his album following a slew of complaints about the lyrics. Oh, James. Where did it all go wrong?

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On a cheerier note, there was also Rylan Clark in series 9. It was never, in all honesty, about the musicianship with Rylan. It was about the SHOWMANSHIP. And, goodness, he had that in oodles.

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He still has it now. The model, turned singer, turned Celebrity Big Brother winner, turned BBOTS presenter, turned Celebrity MasterChefer, can do no wrong in our eyes. We are, and will forever be, Team Rylan.

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Sam Bailey is very lovely and all, but we're still not quite sure how she managed to walk away the winner of The X Factor Series 10 in 2013. However, in February 2014, Sam supported actual Beyoncé for a date on the Mrs Carter tour. Hats off.

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Sorry, Sam who?

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Chirpy Ben Haenow galloped to victory in series 11 of The X Factor last year. He was never in the bottom two and got the most public votes from week four until the end of the competition. The public just loved him!

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But do the public still love him? Alas, not so much. After beating Uptown Funk to the Christmas number one spot in 2014 (no mean feat) Ben has been absent from the music scene. Rumour says he's recording an album so watch this space.

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The X Factor returns to ITV later this year.

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X Factor

X Factor’s Judges Houses Guest Judges Are Revealed, And Actual Louis Tomlinson Is One Of Them

The X Factor Stars: Where Are They Now?

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