The X Factor UK (Series 7)

The X Factor UK (Series 7)
Series	7
Broadcast from	21 August 2010 – 12 December 2010
Judges	Louis Walsh Dannii Minogue Cheryl Cole Simon Cowell Geri Halliwell (guest) Katy Perry (guest) Natalie Imbruglia (guest) Pixie Lott (guest) Nicole Scherzinger (guest)
Presenters	Dermot O'Leary Konnie Huq
Network	ITV ITV2
Number of finalists	16
Winner	Matt Cardle
Runner-up	Rebecca Ferguson
Notable returnees	Marlon McKenzie (2,5) Liam Payne (5) Jade Thirwall (5) Cher Lloyd (5, 6) Treyc Cohen (6)
Ratings	14.13 (millions)
Chronology
Previous	Series 6
Next	Series 8

Series 7 of The X Factor premiered on August 21, 2010 and ended on December 12, 2010.

It is the most watched series to date, with an average of 14.13 million viewers per episode. The final was watched by 17.71 million people, making it the highest rated television episode of 2010 in the UK.

It was won by 27-year old pop rock singer Matt Cardle who was part of the Boys category mentored by Dannii Minogue. Fellow finalists Rebecca Ferguson, One Direction, Cher Lloyd, Mary Byrne and Aiden Grimshaw also secured record deals with One Direction going on to achieve global success with sales of over 40 million, becoming Syco's best-selling act from the show.

Production

The show was presented by Dermot O'Leary for the fourth year running, with spin-off show The Xtra Factor presented by Konnie Huq on ITV2. Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Cheryl Cole returned as judges.

Judges

Louis Walsh	Dannii Minogue	Cheryl Cole	Simon Cowell

Twists/Changes

Multiple Guest Judges: During the auditions and bootcamp, Dannii Minogue was absent on maternity leave and Cheryl Cole missed the Manchester auditions and bootcamp due to illness. This series featured five different guest judges for the auditions which were Geri Halliwell (for the Glasgow auditions), Natalie Imbruglia (for the Birmingham auditions), Katy Perry (for the Dublin auditions), Pixie Lott (for the Cardiff auditions), and Nicole Scherzinger (for the Manchester auditions). Scherzinger was also a guest judge for the third day of bootcamp. However, Minogue and Cole returned for the judges' houses stage.

Category Change: The Over 25s became the Over 28s for the first time. Due to the change in the age limit, soloists younger than 29 were transferred to the Boys and Girls categories.

Wildcards: This was the first series to introduce a wildcard twist as the judges were allowed to bring back a contestant who had originally been eliminated at Judges' Houses.

Live Shows: In a change to the live shows, there were sixteen finalists instead of twelve with the addition of four wildcards in each category. This was the first series to feature four acts in the final instead of three.

Result Show Outfit Change: This series featured a change where every single contestant did not wear the same outfit on the result show as the performance from the previous night

Double Elimination Result Show Return: This is the second series to feature a double elimination but the first to feature multiple double eliminations throughout the live shows. When double eliminations occurred, there was a Bottom Three. The act in the bottom three who finished last in the public vote is automatically eliminated. The two remaining acts compete in the Final Showdown and then face the judges' vote.

Quarter-Final Sing-Off As seven acts were in the quarter-final, a double elimination occurred. In the Bottom Three, after the act who finished last in the public vote was eliminated first, the remaining two acts later sang in the sing-off.

Semi-Final Sing-Off: Due to the final featuring four acts instead of three, this was the first series to have a sing-off in the semi-final.

Finalists

Act		Category	Finish	Elimination
	Nicolò Festa 21, Treviso, Italy	Boys	16th week one	Fewest public votes
	F.Y.D. 22-26, various places	Groups	15th week one	Majority vote
	Storm Lee 37, Edinburgh, Scotland	Over 28s	14th week two	Fewest public votes
	Diva Fever 21-26, various places	Groups	13th week two	Majority vote
	John Adeleye 30, Harlesden, London	Over 28s	12th week three	Majority vote
	Belle Amie 17-23, various places	Groups	11th week four	Deadlock
	Treyc Cohen 27, Stonydelph, Tamworth	Girls	10th week five	Majority vote
X Factor 2011 Live Tour
	Aiden Grimshaw 19, North Shore, Blackpool	Boys	9th week six	Deadlock
	Paije Richardson 20, Islington, London	Boys	8th week seven	Majority vote
	Katie Waissel 24, Harefield, Middlesex	Girls	7th quarter-final	Fewest public votes
	Wagner 53, Cradley, West Midlands	Over 28s	6th quarter-final	Majority vote
	Mary Byrne 51, Ballyfermot, Dublin, Ireland	Over 28s	5th semi-final	Majority vote
	Cher Lloyd 17, Malvern	Girls	4th final	Fewest public votes
	One Direction 16-19, various places	Groups	3rd final	Fewest public votes
	Rebecca Ferguson 24, Anfield, Liverpool	Girls	Runner-up final	Fewest public votes
	Matt Cardle 27, Little Maplestead, Essex	Boys	Winner final	Most public votes

Selection process

Auditions

See: List of The X Factor UK auditionees (series 7)

Notable returnees included Treyc Cohen who first auditioned for the show in Series 6 and made it all the way to Judges' Houses before being eliminated. Runner-up Rebecca Ferguson also auditioned during the same series but did not make it far. Cher Lloyd also previously auditioned twice (during Series 5 and Series 6) but did not make it far. Liam Payne also auditioned during Series 5 but was told that he was too young and was thus rejected. Jade Thirwall previously auditioned during Series 5 but was eliminated at Bootcamp.

Matthew Raymond-Barker, who would go on to win the French version of the show the following year, also auditioned but failed to make it past the first round of bootcamp.

Bootcamp

See: Bootcamp (UK series 7)

Judges' Houses

See: Judges' Houses (UK series 7)

Summary of judges' houses

Judge	Category	Location	Guest mentor(s)	Contestants eliminated	Wildcards
Cole	Girls	Coworth Park, Berkshire	will.i.am	Keri Arrindell, Annastasia Baker, Gamu Nhengu, Raquel Thomas	Treyc Cohen
Cowell	Groups	Marbella	Sinitta	Husstle, Princes and Rogues, The Reason, Twem	Diva Fever
Minogue	Boys	Melbourne	Natalie Imbruglia	Karl Brown, Marlon McKenzie, Tom Richards, John Wilding	Paije Richardson
Walsh	Over 28s	Adare Manor, County Limerick	Sharon Osbourne	Stephen Hunter, Yuli Minguel, Elesha Moses, Justin Vanderhyde	Wagner

Live Shows

Results Summary

Weekly results per act
Week		1		2		3	4	5	6	7	Quarter-Final		Semi-Final	Final
Eliminated
	Matt Cardle	2nd 15.14%		1st 24.39%		1st 23.97%	1st 20.60%	1st 33.41%	1st 23.16%	1st 18.44%	1st 31.95%		1st 35.84%	1st 39.92%	1st 39.83%*	Winner 44.61%*
	Rebecca Ferguson	6th 6.51%		5th 7.99%		5th 8.46%	5th 9.79%	2nd 12.80%	2nd 18.24%	3rd 12.85%	2nd 13.98%		2nd 20.22%	2nd 25.71%	2nd 32.80%*	Runner-Up 38.63%*
	One Direction	4th 10.04%		3rd 9.84%		3rd 11.08%	4th 11.79%	3rd 12.13%	3rd 14.44%	4th 12.65%	4th 11.90%		3rd 17.38%	3rd 18.54%	3rd 20.72%*	Eliminated (final)
	Cher Lloyd	3rd 10.31%		6th 7.17%		4th 9.12%	2nd 19.72%	5th 7.64%	5th 8.88%	8th 8.00%	3rd 13.19%		5th 11.57%	4th 15.83%	Eliminated (final)
	Mary Byrne	1st 22.28%		2nd 18.55%		2nd 13.92%	3rd 11.98%	4th 12.02%	4th 10.66%	5th 11.97%	5th 11.29%		4th 14.99%	Eliminated (semi-final)
	Wagner	12th 1.91%		11th 2.47%		9th 4.50%	8th 4.77%	8th 4.21%	7th 6.30%	6th 9.90%	6th 10.48%		Eliminated (quarter-final)
	Katie Waissel	15th 1.55%		8th 4.30%		8th 5.95%	10th 2.73%	10th 3.22%	8th 5.29%	2nd 16.82%	7th 7.21%
	Paije Richardson	7th 5.83%		9th 3.80%		7th 6.10%	7th 6.22%	7th 5.19%	6th 8.02%	7th 9.37%	Eliminated (week 7)
	Aiden Grimshaw	5th 9.78%		4th 8.82%		6th 6.58%	6th 6.70%	6th 5.85%	9th 5.01%	Eliminated (week 6)
	Treyc Cohen	8th 4.82%		10th 2.82%		12th 2.39%	9th 3.14%	9th 3.53%	Eliminated (week 5)
	Belle Amie	11th 2.13%		13th 1.86%		10th 4.15%	11th 2.56%	Eliminated (week 4)
	John Adeleye	9th 2.46%		7th 4.50%		11th 3.78%	Eliminated (week 3)
	Diva Fever	10th 2.28%		12th 2.05%		Eliminated (week 2)
	Storm Lee	13th 1.89%		14th 1.44%
	F.Y.D.	14th 1.71%		Eliminated (week 1)
	Nicolò Festa	16th 1.36%
Bottom Two		F.Y.D., Waissel		Belle Amie, Diva Fever		Adeleye, Cohen	Belle Amie, Waissel	Cohen, Waissel	Grimshaw, Waissel	Lloyd, Richardson	Byrne, Wagner		Byrne, Lloyd	No final showdown or judges' votes; results were based on public votes alone
Walsh's vote to eliminate		F.Y.D.		Diva Fever		Cohen	Waissel	Cohen	Waissel	Richardson	Wagner		Lloyd
Minogue's vote to eliminate		F.Y.D.		Diva Fever		Adeleye	Belle Amie	Waissel	Waissel	Lloyd	Wagner		Byrne
Cole's vote to eliminate		F.Y.D.		Diva Fever		Adeleye	Belle Amie	None (abstained)	Grimshaw	Richardson	Wagner		Byrne
Cowell's vote to eliminate		Waissel		N/A*		Adeleye	Waissel	Cohen	Grimshaw	Richardson	N/A*		Byrne
Eliminated		Nicolo Festa 1.36% to save	F.Y.D. 3 of 4 votes Majority	Storm Lee 1.44% to save	Diva Fever 3 of 3 votes Majoity	John Adeleye 3 of 4 votes Majority	Belle Amie 2 of 4 votes Deadlock	Treyc Cohen 2 of 3 votes Majority	Aiden Grimshaw 2 of 4 votes Deadlock	Paije Richardson 3 of 4 votes Majority	Katie Waissel 7.21% to save	Wagner 3 of 3 votes Majority	Mary Byrne 3 of 4 votes Majority	Cher Lloyd 15.83% to save	One Direction 20.72% to save	Rebecca Ferguson 38.63% to win

• In Week 2 and the Quarter-Final, Cowell did not need to vote as there was already a majority. However, in the Quarter-Final, he confirmed that he would have voted to eliminate Wagner.
• In the First Vote on the Sunday Final, Cher Lloyd received 6.65% of the public vote despite being eliminated already.
• In the Second Vote on the Sunday Final, One Direction received 12.69% of the public vote despite being eliminated already. Also, in the Second Vote on the Sunday Final, Cher Lloyd received 4.07% of the public vote despite being eliminated already.

Ratings

Template:UK7ratings

Controversies

Contestants
On 25 August, it was announced that contestant Shirlena Johnson had been asked to leave the show because of concerns over her mental health, that she had apparently kept hidden from the producers. Johnson's successful audition was broadcast on 21 August. Johnson's mother claimed that producers knew of Johnson's medical history as they requested her general practitioner's details at bootcamp, but producers said the medical report arrived late. A spokesperson said, "The welfare of contestants is of paramount importance, and for this reason it has been agreed that Shirlena Johnson should not continue in the competition."

The decision to form two groups, Belle Amie and One Direction, from soloists at the end of the bootcamp stage was branded unfair by some of the other groups, as neither had entered the competition as groups. The controversy deepened after Cowell put through both Belle Amie and One Direction and picked just one of the original applicants. Cowell defended the decision, saying that the existing groups were not good enough and other groups such as The Wanted and the Spice Girls were created similarly.

More controversy erupted after the News of the World reported that after failing to qualify in 2009, Treyc Cohen signed a management deal with Artimis Music Management Ltd that landed her a recording contract in October that year with Birmingham-based Ajoupa Records and she released a single entitled "A Time to Be Heard". The rules of the show strictly forbid record deals while a contestant is on the show. According to the newspaper, The X Factor was attempting to release Cohen from her management deal and remove the single from sale. Katie Waissel also had to be released from a contract in the United States after her audition.

Judges' actions
Controversy was caused when Cole chose not to send popular contestant Gamu Nhengu through to the live shows. Nhengu was an early favourite to win and many viewers were angry that Waissel and Cher Lloyd were put through despite failing to complete their performances at judges' houses. Around 1,000 people complained to ITV and by 7 October 220,000 had joined a Facebook page called "Gamu Should Have Got Through". Cole reportedly became the target of death threats, and took extra security precautions in her home as well as at The X Factor. Bookmaker Paddy Power were forced to give odds on Nhengu winning the show after a large number of bets were placed, and made her the favourite to win, but all punters had their losing bets refunded when Nhengu was not chosen as Cole's wildcard. There was speculation that Cole was pressured by producers to axe Nhengu over issues with her visa, but Cheryl denied those claims, saying it was entirely down to her "gut instinct" and that she believed Lloyd, Waissel and Rebecca Ferguson were the best singers in her category. Later in her 2012 autobiography Cheryl: My Story, Cheryl confessed that she had chosen Waissel for the live shows because she was more entertaining, claiming ..."[Cowell] had spent the past two years drumming into me that we needed acts who would be 'good TV.'...she had the character and drive it took to withstand the pressure of the show, and so I put her through, even though she messed up when she sang in front of Will.i.am."

More than 1,000 viewers complained to ITV and more than 2,000 to Ofcom when, in week 5 of the live shows, Cole refused to vote off either of her acts in the bottom two (Cohen and Waissel) and was not allowed to vote last and send the result to deadlock. After Cowell voted against Cohen, Cole was asked to vote second instead of last, which is what normally happens if a judge has two of their own acts in the sing-off. Cole wished to abstain and O’Leary asked her just to confirm that. Cole responded that she was abstaining at that point but wanted O’Leary to ask Minogue and Walsh to cast their votes and then ask Cole again in order for Cole to send the result to deadlock. A spokesperson for The X Factor explained: "A judge can abstain from placing a vote. [Cole] made it clear that she would not send anyone home and therefore abstained from voting. [O'Leary] went back to her to clarify that it was going to go to a majority vote if she did that. [Cole] was unable to take the vote to deadlock as deadlock requires a valid active vote." However, a Daily Mail poll of 6,890 people showed that 4,795 of them wanted Cole to be sacked for refusing to vote. O'Leary revealed that during the previous commercial break, when the bottom two was known to the producers, they realized that Cole might abstain and decided in that if she did, they would go to a majority vote. After the series ended, voting statistics showed that Waissel received fewer votes than Cohen, meaning that if the result went to deadlock, Cohen would have been saved.

Accusations of fixing
After O'Leary's revelation that producers had rehearsed what would happen if Cole abstained in week 5, allegations were made that the result was rigged to save Waissel, with producers assuming that her outlandish performances and growing unpopularity with the public could have resulted in better ratings and sensational press for the show. One of the factors that viewers believed was part of the result being rigged was to not have Cole vote last and stop the result from going to deadlock. Cowell denied this claim, saying he would never want to defraud viewers and said the situation had "been blown out of proportion". O'Leary defended himself and the show on Twitter, saying "We never know which way the judges are going to vote. Ever. The only thing I know is who's in the bottom two when I'm given the card. I don't know which judge to go to until I'm called and the judges, including [Cowell], don't know the vote or who we're coming to next. It's that simple." The following week, Heat magazine printed a report claiming that Cowell was aware of the public votes before the judges decide their votes, and several other media reports contained rumours of the show being fixed. The show's bosses instructed their lawyers to file a formal complaint to the Press Complaints Commission against Heat, saying that the article was false, that very few people know the actual public voting results during the live shows and conspiracy theories being printed in the media are "total and utter rubbish". Heat printed an apology in their 1 January 2011 issue and accepted that Cowell was unaware of the public votes cast until after the series finished.

There were accusations from viewers of fixing during the semi-final when O'Leary announced that only the public's votes would decide which contestants would move on to the final, but the next day this was not the case and there was a final showdown. The show's official website also stated that it would be decided by public vote, and Walsh confirmed that on a radio show earlier in the week. It was the first time in the show's history that the judges were given a vote in a semi-final. Cowell (incorrectly) stated that "There has always been a sing-off when there are five people left in the competition. This is a lot of nonsense about nothing." However, semi-finalist Mary Byrne, who was voted out by the judges at the expense of Cher Lloyd, said she believed the result would be solely down to the public until the day of the semi-final performances and even claimed that Cowell really wanted Lloyd in the final because of Cowell constantly praising Lloyd’s performances, Lloyd as an artist, Lloyd as a performer, and Lloyd having a high likability from Cowell throughout the live shows, and Byrne to be voted out because of Cowell thinking that Byrne’s type of music of easy listening was too different from the other semi-finalists and old-fashioned compared to the more modern mainstream music. Public supporters of Byrne felt that their votes were wasted as the result was not decided by the public votes and the final showdown was only put in place during the result show at Cowell’s behest (more specifically after the semi-final voting period closed and when the votes were being counted) only to prevent Byrne from going to the final and guarantee Lloyd a place in the final, if Byrne finished fourth and Lloyd last in the public vote. Other viewers and Byrne voters thought that Minogue was also told by producers to vote to send through Lloyd to the final because of the assumption at the time that Lloyd finished last in the public vote and to prevent the result from going to deadlock. Following Byrne’s comments and Byrne’s supporter’s claims, Cowell wrote an open letter to the viewers in the Daily Mirror to address the controversy and what happened by saying:

"It's always our [The X Factor producers and Cowell’s] sole intention to try and make the show as entertaining and hopefully exciting every week. Our main focus is to ensure that the contestants are given every opportunity to benefit from being on the show and show their talent. Throughout the series I have met with fans of the show on a regular basis and have listened and acted on their feedback. I believe they have enjoyed the changes in the show this year and I feel it's been a better series as it hasn't followed the same pattern as before. This year we decided to give four contestants a second chance and introduce them as wild card entrants on the first live show. And having 16 finalists rather than just 12 meant that we [incorrectly] introduced both single and double eliminations [this is inaccurate as a single elimination was introduced in the 2004 UK series and a double elimination was introduced in the 2006 UK series]. We decided for the first time some weeks ago to put four people into the final and this meant having five semi-finalists. We also felt it would be fairer that there would be a sing-off rather than automatic elimination [in the semi-final] as there were more contestants. I understand new decisions are seen as controversial by our viewers but it stops the show becoming boring. As the excitement heats up, debates begin but I do want to assure people that the show is definitely not fixed. The sing-off on Sunday [5 December 2010] was something that was always going to happen regardless of who was in the bottom two. The contestants all prepared their save-me songs on Monday last week [29 November 2010]. It was always going to be sad for whoever left. [...] I have always listened to and respected our viewers and have always believed viewers ultimately make the right decision. I hope the viewers trust the show that this is a fair competition."

During The X Factor final four press conference, a press reporter asked Cowell about his thoughts on the enraged public who felt misinformed by the semi-final result format. Cowell replied by saying he rewatched the semi-final result show, that misleading the viewers on the semi-final result show was unintentional, and issued an apology to the baited public voters who felt infuriated with semi-final result.

After the series concluded, voting statistics revealed that if there was not a Final Showdown or if Minogue or Cowell voted to send Byrne through to the final or if the result went to deadlock, Byrne would have advanced to the final and Lloyd would have been eliminated.

Due to the high accusations of the final showdown in the semi-final this series, the final showdown in the semi-final did not return until the 2013 UK series and continued onwards with the exception of the 2017 UK series.

Pitch-correction use
Following the first episode, viewers complained on social networking websites after it appeared that pitch correction (which has been seen as controversial in the music industry) was used to improve the quality of some singers' voices, and forty-five viewers complained to Ofcom. Series producers claimed post-production work was necessary on the show because of the number of microphones used during filming: "The judges make their decisions at the auditions stage based on what they hear on the day, live in the arena. The footage and sound is then edited and dubbed into a finished programme, to deliver the most entertaining experience possible for viewers. When it gets to the live shows, it will be all live." It was reported on 26 August that Cowell had ordered a ban on pitch correction in future episodes, asking for them to be re-edited. In October 2010, Ofcom ruled that viewers had not been "materially misled" as pitch correction was only used during auditions and not when viewers were paying to vote for the contestants.

'Raunchy' final
In December 2010, it emerged that Ofcom were investigating the show after claims that viewers were being encouraged to purchase songs recorded by guest performers Michael Bublé and Diana Vickers. Ofcom also received over 2,868 complaints from viewers about "raunchy" dance routines from Rihanna and Christina Aguilera during the final. Although an ITV spokesperson denied the routines were inappropriate, Cowell was warned by ITV to "cut the sleaze". In April 2011, Ofcom ruled that there had been no breach of guidelines over the performances, and highlighted that "approximately 2,000" of the complaints were received after the routines were covered by the Daily Mail, and said the newspaper's report featured a number of stills that were "significantly more graphic and close-up" than material broadcast, and that were "taken from a different angle to the television cameras".

Team Rankings

1. Girls (mentored by Cheryl Cole)

2. Boys (mentored by Dannii Minogue)

3. Over 28s (mentored by Louis Walsh)

4. Groups (mentored by Simon Cowell)

Trivia

• This was the second series where the winning act and and runner-up performed different potential winner's singles, the first being in its inaugural series. From Series 2 to Series 6 they performed the same single and would do so again the following year.
• This series featured the most watched audition on YouTube courtesy of female duo Ablisa who performed Shayne Ward's winner's single "That's My Goal" badly and received four no's from the judges. The full version can be viewed here.
• This was the first year to have Wildcards during the live shows.
• This series was the first to experience a change in the category age limit which was raised from 25 to 28. As a result of this change, solo contestants aged 25-28 were transferred to the Boys and Girls categories and contestants older than 28 years old became known as the Over 28s.
• Katie Waissel currently holds the record for most appearances in the bottom two, which is four times, while winner Matt Cardle had the longest streak of topping the public vote from Week 2 until his victory.
• This is the third consecutive series to not have any changes in the judging panel. Although this feature follows the first three series, the first three series of The X Factor only had three permanent judges whereas this is the third consecutive series to have the same four permanent judges.
  • This is the only series where at the time, all of the permanent judges in The X Factor UK history physically appears. This was when Sharon Osbourne appears at the Judges Houses stage as Louis Walsh's assistant. Although there would be new permanent judges in future years, up until 2010, only five permanent judges were on the show.
• This is the first series where every judge lost at least one act before The X Factor Live Tour phase began.
• This is the second series where only one judge sent the result to deadlock.
• This is the only series where the judge who sent the result to deadlock voted against the act who was saved.
• This series has a record of six weeks where the act who lost the final showdown received more votes than the act who survived the final showdown.
• This is the second consecutive series where Louis Walsh became the first judge to lose all his acts.
• Although one judge had two acts in the final, every judge would have had their last remaining act in the final if there was not a Final Showdown or if the result went to deadlock in the semi-final.
  • This is the first series where the lowest-placing act in the Final would have been eliminated in Week 7 or the semi-final if the result went to deadlock either time.
• This series of The X Factor was the most watched to date, averaging 14 Million viewers per episode
• In all of the Final Showdowns this series, a female solo act or girl group survived a sing off.
• This was the last series to feature Dannii Minogue on The X Factor UK.