THAN X FOR THE MEMORIES
MARION McMULLEN looks back at the first series of The X Factor as the singing contest is axed after 17 years
FIRST there was Pop Idol and then a new type of singing contest arrived on our TV screens offering a life-changing £1m recording contract to the winner.
The X Factor saw Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne on the original judging panel which allowed groups and older singers to enter as well as young performers. The three judges headed to London, Leeds, Birmingham, Glasgow, Newcastle and Dublin in search of new talent and introduced the boot camp section followed by live shows.
Simon ended up in charge of the older singers, Louis the groups and Sharon the young hopefuls. The series quickly proved a ratings hit when it launched in 2004 with Kate Thornton as the presenter and Ben Shephard presenting spin-off show The Xtra Factor over on ITV2.
Simon beat his fellow judges to enjoy victory with his act Steve Brookstein. The soul singer beat G4 in the two-and-a-halfhour final and notched up six million votes to become the first X Factor champ.
His debut album Heart And Soul went in at number one in the official charts but unfortunately it was his last taste of success and he was dropped by SonyBMG just eight months into his contract.
The X Factor itself became one of the most popular shows on TV and helped launch the careers of chart-topping artists including One Direction, Little Mix, Olly Murs and Leona Lewis.
It also spawned spin-off shows X Factor: Celebrity and X Factor: The Band, but has been off air since 2018 when Dalton Harris was crowned the winner.
Interest has waned and an average of only 2.6 million viewers tuned in to ITV to watch former The Only Way Is Essex star Megan McKenna crowned the winner of spin-off show X Factor: Celebrity.
ITV has simply said: “There are no current plans for the next series of The X Factor at this stage.”