The X Factor | The Guardian (original) (raw)
October 2024
Don’t let under-18s join pop bands, says leading songwriter after Liam Payne’s death
Guy Chambers among industry figures calling for changes in wake of former One Direction star’s tragic death
Of course teenagers want to be pop idols like Liam Payne. Given the perils, should we let them?
Martha Gill
The singer is the latest casualty of an industry that thrusts fame on children too young to cope
Simon Cowell says he is ‘heartbroken’ over death of Liam Payne
Robbie Williams pleads with public in tribute to Liam Payne: ‘Even famous strangers need compassion’
‘Heartbroken’: family, friends and fans pay tribute to Liam Payne
June 2024
Girls Aloud on public bullying, getting older and reuniting after the loss of Sarah Harding: ‘I keep expecting her to burst into the room’
When their bandmate was diagnosed with terminal cancer, it was her dying wish that the tour would go on. Now, the biggest-selling British girl group of the 21st century are making good on their promise
April 2024
Digested week
Digested week: May Sharon Osbourne and Amanda Holden’s spat keep on giving
Lucy Mangan
They might not be Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, but the X Factor judges’ ding-dong over Simon Cowell is a joy
February 2024
The G2 interview
‘For 11 years I’ve kept it quiet’: Rylan on his breakdown, comeback – and the hidden story of The X Factor
When the broadcaster first burst on to British TV on the reality singing show, he was derided and mocked by the press. It wasn’t until a decade later that anyone learned what had actually been happening behind the scenes
January 2024
Dalton’s Dream review – the troubled life of an X Factor winner
This documentary follows Dalton Harris whose storming 2018 triumph left him fearing failure and facing homophobic abuse, especially in his native Jamaica
November 2023
Honest playlist
‘I would have ice-skating parties to UK garage’: Leona Lewis’s honest playlist
The singer’s life was changed by Over the Rainbow, and the first song she heard was on a gravy ad, but what is she doing playing her baby Snoop tunes?
July 2023
‘I’ve had to lie almost every day since’: Lucy Spraggan on The X Factor, sexual assault and survival
Lucy Spraggan reveals she was sexually attacked during X Factor
‘I was terrified of being known as the girl who was attacked while on The X Factor’: Lucy Spraggan on rape, recovery and reality TV
‘All four judges had their eyes on me, big grins on their faces’: Lucy Spraggan recalls her X Factor audition
May 2023
Flashback
Fleur East looks back: ‘My mum loved to put me in the most flamboyant dresses: big poofy sleeves and shoulder pads’
The singer recalls her shy childhood, how she ended up on X Factor twice, and finding her own voice
March 2023
This much I know
Fleur East: ‘I need to cherish every moment’
Why I quit
Crazy, embarrassing, sad – but funny: how I finally embraced my X Factor humiliation
Emily Wilson
December 2022
Flashback
Olly Murs looks back: ‘Our house was like Witham’s Got Talent, without the talent’
The singer and presenter on staying true to his Essex roots, X Factor fame and losing his friend Caroline Flack
November 2022
Self and wellbeing
How Emily Wilson turned her teenage X Factor humiliation into comedy gold
A brutal take-down on the TV talent show led Emily Wilson into therapy. A decade later, she has turned her grim experience into award-winning standup
October 2022
Flashback
Rylan Clark looks back: ‘I wanted people to notice me. After being bullied it was an act of defiance’
TV presenter Rylan Clark looks back at his X Factor audition and the time a school bully wanted a selfie
About 1,578 results for The X Factor