By We're back at Wembley this week as the Six Chair Challenge continues with the boys and the groups. If there's anything like the baying audience mobs of last week, it's going to be brutal.
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Join us from 7pm as we bring all the action as it happens, including Simon calling a contestant a complete arsehole and the judges inventing a new cringeworthy slam-dunk hand gesture. Incredible.
20:59And that's it for this week! Thanks again for joining us, as always it's been loads of fun and now we have a new 4th Power performance to YouTube on repeat. It feels like the Six Chair Challenge started in roughly 2005, but next week it finally concludes with us seeing the conclusion of the Groups category and the Overs. And we know what that means - BUPSI. We can't wait. Join us on Sunday 18th October at 7pm for yet more X Factor fun!
20:57First Kings on next, doing the unnecessarily mutilation of 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody' that was doing the rounds this summer. They are good though, and although the judges keep calling their choreography dated, we actually find it quite refreshing to have a boyband that can actually dance after years of boys in their late teens vaguely bopping to guitar music. They take a seat!
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20:54Next up we have Mon Amie doing '...Baby One More Time'. There has only ever been one good slowed down performance of this song, and that was by Darius Danesh. These girls could never. We quite like them though, and they sound good. Cheryl calls them old-fashioned and then changes her mind when one of them takes off their hat. They take a seat!
20:52We haven't made much of a secret that 4th Power are probably our favourite act in the competition, and they sing 'Show Me How You Burlesque' from Burlesque. It is obviously amazing, and their choreography is completely on point. There's an amazing part where they're clicking their fingers and Simon joins in. The judges all love them, with Simon offering them a place in the Overs category, and of COURSE they get a seat.
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20:48FOURTH POWER KLAXON!!! FOURTH POWER KLAXON!!!
20:47Next up we have Rumour Has It. Last year they auditioned as soloists, were put into a group, and then did not make it through Judges' Houses. This year they're back. They sing 'Hold Back The River' and sound very good. Nick comments that it was a great vocal, but he found it boring. Of course, Radio 1 do play this song a lot, so that's understandable. Cheryl gives them a seat.
20:41The Where's Caroline Flack mystery is solved. SHE WAS FILMING THE STRICTLY LAUNCH SHOW. Incredible.
In case you're wondering where Caroline Flack is tonight...she was filming the Strictly launch show. Ridiculous. #xfactor
— Silly Old Daniel (@sillyolddaniel) October 11, 2015
20:39Next up we have Alien singing 'Hey Mama'. Their styling is absolutely HORRENDOUS. They're all so SHINY and the lengths of their tops are all so BIZARRE. They actually look a bit like they covered themselves in glue and rolled around in foil. But, hideous attire aside, we actually love this performance and it's definitely the best we've seen from them so far. Best of all they end on the splits. Simon makes a very odd comment that as a "British band they should make British music" - excuse us? But of course, they get a seat.
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20:36Next up we have Decibellas, singing 'Skyscraper'. We aren't sure and we agree with Cheryl's view that the lead singer would be better off on her own. Cheryl tells them that she doesn't think they could cut it, and doesn't give them a chair.
20:33First up we've got Menn on Point. They sing 'Cheerleader', which we know as a song is objectively ridiculous but we have always had quite a soft spot for it. It's the perfect song choice for them. We aren't sure we'd quite like to listen to it on record - the vocals are iffy - but their performance is so energetic and joyful to watch. Cheryl calls their energy "infectious" and gives them a seat.
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20:30Next up, Cheryl is filtering down the groups! The groups are going to be split over this week and next week.
20:28So Nick has his final six Boys - Ben Clark, Che Chesterman, Josh Daniel, Simon Lynch, Tom Bleasby and Seann Miley Moore. We were a bit doubtful about this category throughout the challenge, but it's turned out quite strong in the end.
20:27He's swapped for Ollie Marland, who has only just picked up a seat! It's quite sad to watch, as Ollie is absolutely gutted.
20:26Up there with Rachel Adedeji and Sophie Habibis.
You fool! You know how amazing "NATHANAEL LANDSKRONER!" would have sounded in an X Factor voice! #xfactor
— Steven Perkins (@stevenperkins) October 11, 2015
20:23Next up we have Che Chesterman, singing 'It's A Man's World', a song that personally always reminds us of Mary Byrne. He is absolutely BRILLIANT and obviously deserves a seat. Olly comments "that's the voice I wish I had!" and Caroline is presumably still on the tea run. The judges love Che, and he of course gets a seat. Who is he gonna be swapped with? We don't know, as there's yet another surprisingly timed ad break! Sigh.
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20:17Next up we have Ollie Marland, who as a bonus fact, once played football for Port Vale. Would you rather be a popstar or a footballer? Both involve an off-putting amount of exercise, in our opinion. He sings 'Marvin Gaye' by Charlie Puth, which in our opinion is the WORST SONG OF THE YEAR, but we must admit he's got good stage presence and we can imagine him being quite a good pop star. Cheryl comments "a few chicks in the house wanted to Marvin Gaye with you tonight!" and we cringe so hard the building shakes. Nick decides to give him a seat. The crowd, using their fingers, hold up the number contestant who they want Ollie to swap with. It is absolutely BRUTAL. Is this X Factor or Gladiator?! He's swapped with Jamie, who has been whispering to his fellow contestants that he thinks he's going to lose his seat pretty much since he's got it.
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20:13Nick caves in and brings Tom back, and swaps him instead with poor, nervous 16-year-old Nathanael. Whether Nick's original decision was right or not is debatable, but we aren't impressed by a judge who changes their mind under pressure from the crowd. If you've made a decision, stick to your guns that it was the right one, in our opinion.
20:07Eliciting a real life LOL from us, we'd have to agree.
They'll have Ben in like trousers quicker than you can say Middle Of The Road #xfactor pic.twitter.com/ijmLm5fTDa
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— J.Lou Bradley (@loubradley) October 11, 2015
20:06Ben Clark is up next, singing 'All I Want' by Kodaline. I mean, if the charts need anything, it's probably not more white men in their mid-twenties singing midtempo songs in husky voices, but we must admit we're surprised - he's good and deserves a seat. The judges are similarly pleasantly surprised, and he's offered a seat! Nick decides to swap Ben with Tom Bleasby, and there is absolute UPROAR. The audience chants, boos and yells "bring him back". What will Nick do next? Who knows, as there's yet another advert break.
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20:00Nick decides to swap Josh with Papasidero. We do think it's a bit of a shame, but probably a reasonable choice. Papasidero takes it with grace, but does think that Nick "doesn't understand" him and with another judge it may have been different.
19:58An interesting perspective! Does anyone else think that Mason deserved to have more screentime?
I have to agree with Mason Noise, I saw his audition at Wembley and he was really ace. I was disappointed they cut it right down #thexfactor
— Mich ••• (@michlan) October 11, 2015
19:55Josh Daniel is up next. We have always really liked Josh Daniel. He admits before his audition that he is "really nervous". Rookie mistake, Josh! NEVER SAY YOU'RE NERVOUS! They will now use this against you FOREVER! He sings 'Clown' by Emeli Sande, and it's good, but we aren't absolutely blown away. Simon comments that it wasn't quite as good as his first audition, but Nick decides to offer him a seat. But all the seats are full, so whose will he take? AD BREAK, of course.
19:50Mason's outburst was particularly silly, as Nick comments that if he hadn't had done that - he'd have got a chair. We hope he's proud of himself.
19:49We're back in the action, and Simon criticises Mason for dismissing the producers' work and calls Mason a "complete arsehole". During the disagreement none of the contestants can bear to look, and Simon Lynch and Seann Miley Moore's gasps are a treat. Mason refuses to apologise to the producers and drops his mic and storms off. Immature behaviour. We aren't impressed.
19:46Valid.
Mason Noise has had 47 seconds longer on X Factor 2015 than Caroline Flack.
— Ryan Love (@RyanJL) October 11, 2015
19:43Next up we have Mason Noise. He comments that he's gonna bring something that no one's ever seen before, and he "couldn't be more ready" for the Six Chair Challenge. Careful, Mason, nobody likes overconfidence. He sings a mashup of 'Earned It'. 'The Fix' and 'Sexy Back', bringing on some kind of bizarre hype man halfway through the performance. We aren't sure about the vocals as a whole, but he's a good performer and in Nick's shoes we'd probably give him a seat just for being a bit different. But then.... before the judges even give the critiques, Mason embarks on a rant and asks the crowd to film his speech on their phones. He is not happy about only having a 47 second slot at auditions when others had ten minutes. Simon threatens to throw him off the stage, and then we cut to the ad break...
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19:38Next up we have Seann Miley Moore, who has just moved to London from Australia and stands for being himself. Seann's shoes are absolutely incredible, although if we wore those on a night out we'd definitely have changed into the Primark flats we brought along in a Wilkos bag by 9.30pm. Seann sings 'I Who Have Nothing' and is INCREDIBLE. Nobody could say this man is just a gimmick - he's a talented person who feels comfortable to be himself. He's our favourite in this category so far. He gets a standing ovation, and Simon notes that Seann may not be everyone's cup of tea, but he is the X Factor. We'd have to agree. Of course, Seann takes a seat!
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19:34Next up we have Nathanael, who is only 16 and he is very nervous. As we know, at the Six Chair Challenge it is basically FORBIDDEN to be nervous, and unfortunately he is quite obviously bricking it. He sings 'I Have Nothing', and overwhelmed by nerves, misses a couple of lines (another cardinal X Factor sin). We really like Nathanael, but we wonder if he would be better off having a couple of years off and coming back to X Factor when he's a bit older and more confident. Nick is in two minds but decides to give him a seat.
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19:29Where is Caroline, by the way? Olly always seems to be by himself!
19:26We agree about Papasidero, to be honest.
I was kind of hoping this guy would just come out in increasingly bigger wings the further he got in the competition #xfactor
— Sophie Hall (@SophLouiseHall) October 11, 2015
19:24Next up we have Simon Lynch, 23 years old from the Isle of Man. He lives at home with his mum, his dad and his dog, but he's ready for something bigger. He takes a risk by singing 'Hold Your Hand' by Jess Glynne, but it pays off and he sounds brilliant. He's definitely the best of the Boys' category so far. Simon Cowell comments that it's the first time during the Boys' category he's seen someone who can sing well, and the camera pan over the three contestants who already had seats suggests they're a little offended. Simon then goes on to say "I mean literally, if you don't get a seat, I will eat myself" and we ponder what an interesting turn X Factor would take if he actually did that. Nick references playing that song on the radio - he works on the radio, did you realise that? - and unsurprisingly, Simon gets a seat!
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19:19Next up we have the bizarrely dressed Papasidero, who we've always had quite a soft spot for. He sings 'Lady Marmalade' in some form of court jester fancy dress outfit, and he sounds alright. We must admit we agree with Nick when he says that he's not quite sure whether Papasidero would win, but we are quite pleased to see him get a seat.
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19:17Next up is Jamie Eldridge, 20 from Salisbury. He first fell in love with music at the age of 7. Some quick maths shows us that that's the year that 'Dilemma' by Nelly ft Kelly Rowland came out, so who can blame him, really? He sings 'Get What You Give' and we like his shirt a lot. We really like Jamie, so we're happy when he's given a seat.
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19:14Next up we have Tom Bleasby singing 'I Look To You'. His voice is, in a word, interesting. We can't decide whether we love it or if it reminds us of that duck army Vine that went viral. Or perhaps, both. The judges like him, and Nick does feel as though not everyone's going to love Tom. He explains that in terms of playing an artist on the radio, Tom has an interesting voice. (But so do the geese in that Vine.) Tom takes the first seat!
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19:10Next up is Danny with the Man Bun. Apparently he's singing Chaka Khan's 'Ain't Nobody', but we have to agree with Cheryl that his enunciation is so poor we can hardly tell. It's not looking good for Nick so far...
19:09Jordan is up next singing 'No More I Love Yous'. Simon hates it and describes him as a "rain cloud on a sunny day". Oh dear. Still no seat for anyone in the Boys' category...
19:07Next up is Tom, 26, a gym receptionist. He delivers a very weak performance of 'Turn Up The Music' by Chris Brown, and has brought some backing dancers with him. It reminds us of watching the evening entertainment during a two star holiday in Majorca. Simon describes the vocals as "horrendous" and Nick does not offer a seat.
19:06First up is 18-year-old Brodie Kelly. Brodie is very nervous, which we have noticed is being treated like an absolute crime during this year's X Factor. If you don't seem instantly confident, you're out. Brodie sings 'A Thousand Years' by Christina Perri, only a couple of years old and already an X Factor classic, and does look a little bit like he's up against a shooting squad. Rita delivers the INCREDIBLY harsh "I see what you're doing with the whole heartthrob thing, but I don't believe it." Nick ignores the crowd who are chanting for a seat and decides not to give Brodie a chance.
19:03Of course, Nick will be mentoring the Boys. He gives the usual spiel regarding "most important thing they've ever had to do", "you've got to give it every single thing", "make or break your career" and somehow still manages to sound like he's reading out a shopping list.
19:01IT'S TIME! TO FACE! THE OVERBLOWN X FACTOR INTRO! Last weekend we had the Girls' Six Chair Challenge, and tonight we will see the Boys and the first half of the Groups. And Simon will continue to have facial hair.
18:55Five minutes to go, it's the PREPARE YOUR X FACTOR DRINK KLAXON! It's up to you whether you make yourself a nice cup of tea or a strong dry martini, but we will warn you that we've heard during this episode Simon DOES call someone an arsehole.
18:46The rugby 'pundit' just described the Irish players as 'ten feet tall'. And people say entertainment television uses hyperbole.
18:42We're really enjoying the use of 'Just a Little' by Liberty X in that MoneySupermarket advert.
18:33Welcome one and all to this week's X Factor live blog! We've still got about half an hour before everything properly kicks off, but here's some teasers about the episode if you fancy it. Looks like we're in for some drama AND that Simon's facial hair remains intact.
