The X Factor (United Kingdom)
| Television broadcast | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The X Factor |
| Country of production | United Kingdom |
| Year (s) | since 2004 |
| Production company |
Syco TV Thames (2012-) Talkback Thames (2004-2011) |
| length | 45 to 110 minutes |
| genre | Casting show |
| idea | Simon Cowell |
| Moderation | Dermot O'Leary (since 2016) |
| First broadcast | September 4, 2004 on ITV |
The X Factor is a talent show in the UK and the origins of The X Factor franchise. It is broadcast twice a week, usually on Saturdays and Sundays, on the UK television channel ITV . Most recently, an offshoot was aired in December 2019 under the name The X Factor: The Band .
Emergence
The X Factor was developed by Sony Music in collaboration with Simon Cowell to replace the talent show Pop Idol . Cowell, who had previously served as a judge on Pop Idol , had already expressed a wish to broadcast a television casting show to which he had the rights. The first season of Pop Idol was very successful, while the second season was also successful, but the audience numbers in the final fell to a minimum. Many, including Cowell's fellow judge Pete Waterman , also believed that Michelle McManus did not deserve the win. In 2004, Simon Cowell finally announced a new casting show with ITV called The X Factor , in which Simon Fuller , the inventor of the Idol series, should not be involved. The similarity of the two formats was later dealt with in court proceedings.
concept
Categories
In contrast to the role model Pop Idol , The X Factor has no age limit and singing groups can apply. Furthermore, the candidates are divided into categories and looked after individually. Simon Cowell said, “We're trying to create a different competition. Hopefully we're going to be able to appeal to somebody over the age of 35 who keeps saying to me 'there aren't any artists I like in the competition'. It's amazing, but we haven't catered for older record buyers who want to buy into the new Cliff Richard or whatever. "
For the first three seasons, candidates were divided into three categories: 16- to 24-year-old solo singers, solo singers over 24, and groups. Since each category is specially supervised by a juror, the groups were restructured from season four after a fourth juror was introduced. Furthermore, in seasons 4 and 5, the minimum age was reduced from 16 to 14 years, which was changed again in the sixth season. Since then, the groups have been Boys (male solo singers under 25), Girls (female solo singers under 25), Over 25s (solo singers from 25) and Groups . In the seventh season, the age limits were moved to under / over 28, only to return it to the limit of 25 years in the eighth season. The same thing was repeated in the ninth and tenth seasons. In all seasons, the production of the show decided which category was supervised by which juror. The twelfth season made an exception, in which viewers could vote on this decision via Twitter.
Phases
During the course of the show, there are five stages that candidates must go through:
- Phase 1: Producers' Auditions - unaired auditions for the producers of the show, during which it is decided who is allowed to sing in front of the prominent jury
- Phase 2: Judges' Auditions - casting in front of the prominent jury, either in a casting room (as in seasons 1–5, 13–14), an arena (as in seasons 6–9, 12, since 15), or both (Seasons 10-11)
- Phase 3: Bootcamp - a sequence of challenges and knockout rounds (seasons 1–9), the Six-Chair Challenge (seasons 10–11, since 15) or both (seasons 12–14)
- Phase 4: Judges' Houses - either pre-produced or live
- Stage 5: Live shows or finals
Note: In seasons 10 and 11 the boot camp was shortened to a few minutes and shown before the Six Chair Challenge was broadcast .
Castings
Before the actual production of the show, some castings are held in front of the producers of the show, to which you can either be invited after prior registration or to which everyone can sing ( open auditions ). These auditions, which are held in several locations in Great Britain , are well attended every year and are not broadcast themselves, but pictures of waving crowds and the like are shown over and over again during the broadcast audiences. For this purpose, the audience has already been provided with "self-designed" signs by the production team. After the candidates often have to wait for hours, they audition in front of some of the producers. Afterwards, if the producers liked it, they received a golden ticket with which they could audition in front of more important producers. Only candidates who make it through a second and third round of auditions will actually be invited to the television castings.
A selection of the recorded auditions, mostly the best, worst and funniest, are then broadcast on television. In the first five seasons of the format, each candidate sang one or more songs of their choice in the a capella casting room . Up to the ninth season, the candidates could then choose whether they wanted to sing with accompaniment or without, while performing in front of a large audience. The candidates evaluate their performance directly and give either a “yes” or a “no”. If the singer or the group got a “yes” from a majority of the jurors, the next phase continues. In the tenth and eleventh seasons, room auditions were held again in addition to the arena auditions , while these were canceled again in seasons 12 and 15. In seasons 13 and 14 only room auditions took place.
Over 50,000 singers and groups applied for the first season, in the second season around 75,000, this was exceeded by the third season with around 100,000 applicants and the fourth season, for which over 150,000 hopeful candidates had applied. 182 thousand acts competed for the fifth and a record-breaking 200 thousand for the sixth season of the show. In season 7, candidates were able to apply with a video for the first time, and in the ninth season there was the chance to submit their application via Facebook .
Bootcamp and Judges' Houses
The title contenders selected in the auditions are heavily selected in the Bootcamp and Judges' House until only a small number of candidates can be found in each category who then take part in the live shows . In the bootcamp, the jurors select six acts from each category, which are then forwarded to the judges' houses . Only then will you find out which group you will be available as a mentor. The boot camp is divided into two parts: In the first section, the candidates are divided into groups in which they are to sing in front of the jury. Those who survive this phase are allowed to sing in front of the jury one more time, but this time alone and mostly in front of an additional live audience. Both parts have been recorded at Wembley Arena since the seventh season - the only exceptions here are the twelfth and thirteenth seasons, in which the bootcamp took place at The Grove Hotel in Watford and Alexandria Palace . As a rule, the jurors do not give direct feedback, but decide who to go further after the performances. In seasons 4, 6, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15, the judges learned at the same time as the candidates which group they should supervise. In seasons 5, 7 and 9, however, the contestants were not told this until they arrived at the Judges' House . There, after further appearances, the mentor decides which three of his six candidates he will take with him to the live shows .
Between the first and second part of the boot camp , different solo singers are often divided into new groups by the jury or existing groups are dissolved or changed.
After the bootcamp round, the jurors usually find out which category they are responsible for and then, in some seasons, set up their line-up for the next round, the Judges' House , during a six-chair challenge . In this challenge, candidates can get one of the six chairs on the stage if they convince the respective juror. If, however, someone else appears afterwards who can convince the juror more, then he can replace the former. Only those who end up sitting on the six chairs get into the next round. Sometimes the previous boot camp was then shown in abbreviated form, sometimes in full. Since season 15, the jurors have been able to secure a place in the next round by pressing the Golden X Buzzer.
The X Factor house
The selected finalists (so far either 9, 12, 13 or 16 acts) will then move into a shared apartment, in which they will live with the other candidates until the end of the show or their departure. The production team also lives there. In 2012 the finalists stayed at the Corinthia Hotel in London.
Live shows or finals
The final phase consists of a sequence of two live broadcast shows, the first of which includes performances by the candidates and the second the presentation of the results of the audience voting. This results in which further act is eliminated. In addition, prominent guest performers appear on stage at irregular intervals. The finals were filmed for the first 13 seasons at Fountain Studios in Wembley , London. In the first five seasons, both shows were broadcast on Saturday evenings, while for season 6 the Results Show (results announcement) was postponed to Sunday. In season 1, nine acts were sent to the live shows, followed by twelve in the second. After a wildcard system was introduced in the seventh season, there were then 16 acts in the live shows. The number of finalists varied over the years due to various factors.
Appearances
The show is primarily concerned with finding a potential pop star or group with star potential. Singing talent, appearance, personality, stage presence and dance routines are therefore important elements in the performance of the participants. In the first show, each act appears once in front of a studio audience and the judges and usually sings over a previously recorded playback. Dancers are also often seen; in addition, participants occasionally slide themselves on the guitar or piano. In the first two seasons, the candidates usually presented a familiar song. In the first season it was mainly the case that the respective participant could decide for himself how he wanted to present the song. From the third season onwards, each season had an overarching theme, for which the song to be presented was specifically selected. Often prominent guests are invited who fit the respective topic. In the thirteenth season, the topics for the next live show were selected live and “randomly” by a jukebox generator. After each appearance, the jurors evaluate the performance directly. This regularly leads to heated discussions when mentors defend their candidates after another juror criticized something about them. After all candidates have appeared, the phone lines will open and the audience will decide who will advance and who will have to leave the show.
Once the number of candidates has dropped to a certain, varying number, each candidate sings twice, and the audience is allowed to call after the first round of performances. In the grand finale, there are ultimately between two and four participants who compete for victory.
According to The X Factor
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The X Factor winner will be rewarded with a £ 1 million record deal with Cowell's Syco Music label in association with Sony Music . Candidates who also have high final placements, but not the victory, are sometimes offered record contracts, but this is not guaranteed. In the first three seasons it was announced that the winners would also be managed in the music industry by their X Factor mentor. In the fourth season, however, a fourth place at the jury was introduced and occupied with the singer Danii Minogue . At that time she was the only female juror who did not have a qualification as a manager. After this promptly won The X Factor with its finalist Leon Jackson , an external manager was selected for this.
Season overview
Overview table
Season 1 (2004)
The first season aired from September 4 to December 11, 2004. The show was divided into several phases: auditions, boot camp. Judges' Houses and Live Shows . The prize was a £ 1m record deal with Syco Music.
Simon Cowell , Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne served as the jury , while Kate Thornton hosted the show. Ben Shephard also hosted the spin-off The Xtra Factor on ITV2 TV.
The auditions took place in Dublin , London , Birmingham , Leeds and Glasgow .
Steve Brookstein was the season winner, making Simon Cowell the winning juror. Brookstein had some chart successes in the years that followed, while second-placed band G4 released two albums, both of which went platinum.
After the auditions, each juror was assigned a category:
- Simon Cowell: Over 25s (solo artist from 25 years)
- Sharon Osbourne: 16-24s (solo artist up to 24 years)
- Louis Walsh: Groups
Each juror could select 12 candidates from his category for the second round, the boot camp , where they reappeared. The two episodes from this round aired on October 9th and 16th. At the end of the boot camp, each juror could only take five of his artists into the next round.
The candidates who made it to the Judges' Homes round drove to what was each treated as the home of their mentor. They were interviewed there and performed one more time. After that, each juror had the opportunity to take three of his candidates to the live shows . There were a total of 9 finalists .
Two live shows were broadcast every Saturday evening. By week 5, each act performed a song on the first live show and the audience was given the opportunity to call for their favorite act. In the second show, the two candidates with the fewest votes were named and they had to sing one more time before the jury decided who had to leave the show.
The format changed from the sixth week, in which each candidate appeared twice on the first show and once on the Results Show with a song. At the end of this, the act with the fewest votes had to leave the show.
The live shows started on October 23rd and ended on December 11th, 2004 with the finals.
Season 2 (2005)
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The second season aired from August 20 to December 17, 2005. It was longer than the first season. Simon Cowell , Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne continued to serve as the jury , while Kate Thornton returned as presenter. Ben Shephard also continued to host the spin-off The Xtra Factor on ITV2 TV.
Shayne Ward prevailed against almost 75,000 other applicants and was named the winner of the season, making Louis Walsh the winning juror. By participating in the competition and the popularity that went with it, not only Ward, but also runner-up Andy Abraham , third-placed group Journey South and Maria Lawson , who came in eighth, got a record deal. The fifth-placed Chico Slimani was also able to top the British single charts with a single .
The auditions were broadcast once a week from August 20 to September 24, 2005. After the auditions, each juror was assigned a category:
- Sharon Osbourne: Over 25s (solo artist aged 25+ )
- Louis Walsh: 16-24s (solo artist up to 24 years)
- Simon Cowell: Groups
The first Bootcamp episode appeared on the first and the second on October 8th. At the end of the boot camp, each juror could only take seven of his artists into the next round.
The candidates who made it into the round of Judges' Houses drove to a house that was each treated as the home of their mentor. They were interviewed there and performed one more time. After that, each juror had the opportunity to take four of his candidates to the live shows instead of only 3 as in the previous year . There were a total of 12 finalists .
Two live shows were broadcast every Saturday night during the competition. Up to and including week 7, each act performed a song on the first live show and the audience was given the opportunity to call for their favorite act. In the second show, the two candidates with the fewest votes were named and they had to sing one more time before the jury decided who had to leave the show.
The format changed from week eight, in which each candidate appeared with a song twice on the first show and once on the Results Show . At the end of this, the act with the fewest votes had to leave the show. Live shows began on October 15 and the live finale aired on December 17, 2005, with Shayne Ward winning the season.
Season 3 (2006)
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The third season aired from August 19 to December 16, 2006. Simon Cowell , Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne continued to serve as the jury , while Kate Thornton returned as presenter. Ben Shephard also continued to host the spin-off The Xtra Factor on ITV2 TV. After the semi-finals on December 9th, Cowell was already the winning mentor, as the two finalists Leona Lewis and Ray Quinn were from his team.
Instead of the previous red and purple design, the third season was red and blue. A new website for the season was also released on August 11, 2006. The finale brought the show with 12.6 million people tuned in, the highest ratings to date.
On December 16, Leona Lewis was crowned winner in the final. She had received 60% of the audience votes. Lewis released a cover version of Kelly Clarkson's song A Moment Like This as her winning single, which reached number one on the charts . Although it wasn't released until mid-December, A Moment Like This became the second best-selling single of the year. In January 2007 the single achieved platinum status, certified by the British Phonographic Industry .
With 30 million units sold, Lewis is one of the show's most successful contestants to date and the only former candidate to have been nominated for a Grammy Award .
Season three was the last to have just three jurors and was moderated by Kate Thornton .
Simon Cowell , Sharon Osbourne, and Louis Walsh were reinstated as judges on the show, exposing rumors that Osbourne and Walsh would not be returning due to financial reasons being false. Kate Thornton and Ben Shephard also returned as presenters, with Shephard only moderating the spin-off The Xtra Factor on ITV2.
In the run had Simon Cowell said: "The next international boyband or girl band is what I want to see in this year's show." There were also rumors that there was a new, long-term juror and that the age limit would be lowered to 14 years. Both turned out to be wrong, but were actually enforced in season four . Instead, various guest jurors, including Paula Abdul , were used this season .
The auditions were held in London , Birmingham , Dublin , Manchester , Leeds and Glasgow and aired from August 19th. A total of over a hundred thousand people applied for the show.
After the auditions, each juror was assigned a category:
- Sharon Osbourne: Over 25s (solo artist aged 25+ )
- Simon Cowell: 16-24s (solo artist up to 24 years)
- Louis Walsh: Groups (groups)
Originally it was planned that the jurors in their respective category could leave 21 candidates at the end of the boot camp . But Cowell decided he made a mistake by not including Ray Quinn in this. The production then allowed him and the other jurors to include another candidate in their selection.
In the Judges' Houses round, the number of candidates was reduced to 12. The band Avenue was originally allowed to appear on the live shows, but was later disqualified for hiding an existing management contract with a manager who was independent from the show. Their place was taken by Eton Road .
Two live shows were broadcast every Saturday evening during the competition. Up to and including week 6, each act performed a song on the first live show and the audience was given the opportunity to call for their favorite act. In the second show, the two candidates with the fewest votes were named and they had to sing one more time before the jury decided who had to leave the show.
The format changed from the seventh week, in which each candidate appeared twice on the first show and once on the Results Show with a song. At the end of this, the act with the fewest votes had to leave the show. In the finale, Lewis and Quinn each sang four songs. Live shows began on October 14th and the live finale aired on December 16, 2005, with Leona Lewis winning the season.
Moderators
- Kate Thornton (2004-2006)
- Olly Murs and Caroline Flack (2015)
- Dermot O'Leary (2007-2014; since 2016)
Web links
- X-Factor - Behind The Scenes on bonedo.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Cowell reveals new talent search , BBC News. April 23, 2004. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
- ↑ Wade Paulse: "Plus-size" contestant wins UK 'Pop Idol', as judge Pete Waterman walks out . Reality TV World. December 22, 2003.
- ^ A b Neil Wilkes: Pete Waterman: "Michelle is rubbish" . In: Digital Spy . February 23, 2004. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
- ↑ Pop idol mogul sues Simon Cowell , BBC News. September 10, 2004. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
- ↑ a b Christian Tobin: 'X Factor' changes age group boundaries , Digital Spy . July 26, 2010.
- ↑ eamurphy: Over 25s - X Factor odds . Boylesports . September 3, 2011. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved on February 15, 2014.
- ↑ Josh Darvill: X Factor 2012 to see Over 25s to become Over 28s (again) . TellyMix. July 16, 2012. Retrieved February 15.
- ↑ Tom Eames: 'X Factor' 2013: Judges' categories revealed? . In: Digital Spy . August 9, 2013. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
- ↑ a b c d Genevieve Hassan: What happens at an X Factor audition? , BBC News. August 21, 2009.
- ↑ Walsh's charm factor . In: Whitby Gazette , October 30, 2007.
- ^ Catherine Earp: 'The X Factor' confirms audition changes . In: Digital Spy , April 6, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2013.
- ↑ Room auditions for X Factor 2015 HAVE been axed! Glad or sad? . June 5, 2015. Archived from the original on August 18, 2016.
- ↑ New X Factor proves ratings hit , BBC News. August 21, 2005.
- ^ The appeal of the Macdonalds , The Independent on Sunday , November 25, 2006
- ^ All change as The X Factor returns , BBC News. August 17, 2007. Retrieved August 18, 2007.
- ↑ X Factor's Dannii Minogue says she 'won't miss' Sharon Osbourne , The Daily Telegraph , August 11, 2008
- ^ The X Factor opens Facebook auditions . BBC. April 17, 2012. Retrieved April 22, 2012.
- ^ About The X Factor , ITV. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
- ↑ Cowell: 'X Factor' judges are out of sync ' . In: Digital Spy , August 16, 2007.
- ↑ Josh Darvill: XFactor 2013: Sharon Osbourne finds new Bootcamp twist difficult . TellyMix. August 13, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
- ^ Mark Boardman: The X Factor Bootcamp six chair challenge . MarkMeets. October 26, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
- ↑ Nigel Lewis: Private view: A house with real X Factor . In: Primelocation . April 11, 2010.
- ↑ Colin Daniels: 'X Factor' Rylan Clark, Lucy Spraggan kicked out of hotel? . In: Digital Spy , October 16, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
- ↑ a b "Hallelujah: how Leonard Cohen became an X Factor winner without trying" , The Times , December 13, 2008
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4089147.stm
- ↑ Neil Wilkes: 'X Factor' to return on August 20 . In: Digital Spy . August 9, 2005. Retrieved August 11, 2011.
- ↑ X Factor winner dreaming of Christmas number one . In: London Evening Standard , December 17, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
- ↑ Chris Taylor: X Factor's Leona Lewis Christmas Number One , EntertainmentWise. December 24, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
- ↑ Top 40 Singles of 2006 . BBC Radio 1. Archived from the original on December 28, 2008.
- ↑ British single certifications - Leona Lewis - A Moment Like This . British Phonographic Industry . Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
- ↑ Lisa McGarry: X Factor Rule Breaking .... Again! , UnrealityTV. October 9, 2006. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2013.