X Factor Betting: Intriguing wild child leaves Cowell and co gawping

X-Factor / Mike Norman / 17 September 2008 / Leave a Comment

Alexandra was born to sing, Hannah is incredile and the girls are setting the pace early on, says Mike Norman.

With just one audition show to be screened before 'Boot Camp' and the live TV stages of the competition, it's the females who have so far made the biggest impression in this year's renewal of The X Factor .

I've previously spoken about Rachel Hylton ([25.0] and overs) and Laura White (girls), two outstanding solo singers from completely different backgrounds, while Francine and Nicola (groups) have the potential to be this year's Same Difference - cheesy but likeable. But in recent weeks the bar has been raised by Hannah Bradbeer (girls) and Alexandra Burke (girls), both of whom auditioned brilliantly and got some fantastic comments from the Cowell and Co Judging Panel.

Hannah is intriguing. Looking like she'd just had her head flushed down the toilet she walked into the room donning a lovely girly dress.... and a leather jacket. She admitted to absolutely hating her office job (make that ex-office job) and that this competition could help her move on. She then sang the Duffy hit "Mercy" which left the judges gawping in amazement. Simon's immediate comment of "Love this girl" is one that we are becoming accustomed to now, but his later revelation that Hannah is "Incredible, one to watch, trust me" added more weight to the belief that this outspoken wild child can go a long way this year.

Another singer who will definitely go a long way is Alexandra, just like she did in 2005. Back then, as a raw 16-year-old, she made it to the final seven in her category but just missed out on making it to the live TV stages. Three years later she looks a polished performer, almost the finished article in fact. After singing the Whitney Houston hit "Saving All My Love For You", Louis commented that she was "Amazing, absolutely amazing" before saying, "In every sense I think you're world class".

Alexandra reminds me a lot of Leona Lewis. Her looks and voice are very similar, while her shyness and not realising just how good she is were traits that Leona also had. Cheryl commented that she was born to sing and I agree. When (not if) Alexandra reaches the TV stages she will be amongst the front-runners in the 'Outright Winner' market, so if you can get matched in excess of [6.0] you will be doing well.

So to the males, and the question of whether they have enough ammunition to win this year. Judging by Ashiq Paca's audition the answer is a resounding no. Ashiq claimed that his music would change the world, that he had the power and passion to heal people and that his music would make the world a better place. Michael Jackson he wasn't but Ashiq had a style of his own - a style that caught the judges' attention. You can watch his audition here, but don't expect many things in your life to change instantly.

One man who certainly had passion was 38-year-old Danny Evans ([25.0] and overs), who tragically lost his wife shortly after she gave birth to their 11-month-old daughter. Normally his choice of song and appearance would have been filed under the category of 'corny', but there was something very special about Danny's performance. Give me a story about a child losing her mother and a man singing from his heart to his late wife and I get flooded with tears. He doesn't have the class to win, but his heartbreaking story shows The X Factor in a brilliant light and Danny's immense appeal will take him on a long emotional journey.

Other auditions to catch the eye were Joelle Moses (girls) and Austin Drage (boys). Joelle is a 17-year-old who has never had any vocal training other than to listen to a CD bought from town. The experience will be great for her, but you get the feeling that if she did reach the TV stages she would be one of the first to go.

Austin is one of the strongest male singers we've seen so far. He was the subject of 'Fix Factor' last week because of his apparent friendship with Cheryl Cole, which has since been strenuously denied. If he can get the monkey of being friends with Cheryl off his back, then he may well go far.