X Factor prankster sings along with the boys
ONE of the perils of live TV is that even the best laid plans can go awry.
But when Saturday night’s X Factor was interrupted by a prankster, even broadcast veteran Simon Cowell seemed surprised.
The live show was momentarily thrown into confusion when boyband Stereo Kicks found themselves with a ninth member.
Comedian Simon Brodkin, best known as his BBC3 alter-ego Lee Nelson, rushed on to the stage wearing earpieces and a bomber jacket and joined in the singing.
The band carried on with their performance of Michael Jackson’s hit You Are Not Alone, with 14-year-old Charlie Jones even reaching out to welcome the intruder. But Cowell and fellow judge Louis Walsh leapt from their seats in apparent indignation.
As Walsh gestured furiously for him to leave the stage, Brodkin was bundled away by a security guard.
Following the incident, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini praised the band for keeping their cool, saying they were ‘very professional’.
However such is the show’s reputation for stage-management, many fans cynically assumed the stunt had been orchestrated. One disenchanted viewer wrote on Twitter that it was ‘obviously a publicity stunt’, while others suggested the stage invasion was ‘a way of getting ratings up’.
Brodkin, 36, confirmed that he was the intruder, later tweeting: ‘There are so many of them I thought anyone could have a go.’
Show insiders denied his arrival was planned, with one source saying: ‘On this occasion the conspiracy theorists are very wrong.’ A spokesman said the disturbance was ‘immediately dealt with’ by security.
It is not the first time Brodkin has gatecrashed a high-profile event. In June he was caught infiltrating the England football team as they boarded a plane to Brazil, and he has previously been cautioned for warming up with the Manchester City team.