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Alexandra Burke may have been voted the winner of last year's series of The X Factor, but she is not the only finalist still shining in the spotlight one year on.
While the big-voiced diva is working on her new album in Los Angeles, JLS have taken the charts by storm and are followed everywhere by hoards of screaming fans, while Diana Vickers is soon to take to the stage in the new West End production of Little Voice.
Former Blue Coat Scott Bruton is also now a star of the stage. Despite being told he was lacking the X Factor, he has successfully toured the country with 50s musical Dreamboats And Petticoats which has now taken up residence in the West End.
This time last year they were all just hopefuls, queueing up to audition before Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue, Cheryl Cole and Louis Walsh and dreaming they would get through, and now after the trials of the live shows and being knocked out one by one they have gone on to forge musical careers, with or without Simon Cowell's help.
But while they worked so hard to prove they had The X Factor on last year's auditions, now it's all about using their talent to shake off that "former X Factor contestant" label.
Scott, whose run as Bobby in Dreamboats And Petticoats at London's Savoy theatre may even be extended, is delighted with the way things have gone for him since he left the show.
"There's always going to be some sense of pride there because every theatre-goer and everybody that's working in theatre always dreams of going into the West End, so going in on my debut as a lead is something quite special and it means a lot to me," said the 20-year-old, who studied drama at college in Manchester.
So had he always had his sights set on a stage role when he auditioned for The X Factor?
"No, I've always wanted to be a pop star ever since I was little," admits Scott. "You do well out of a show like that, you come out and there's people asking what you'd like to do. I never ruled out a slot in the West End because I'd always done drama at college.
"But I've just signed a record deal with Universal so hopefully I'm going to have singles and albums coming out and it should be great."
On the show Scott's story was played out as the Pontin's Blue Coat, trying to shed the cheesy image he had built up as a live entertainer at the holiday camps.
"Blue Coat wants to make it big, that was my angle and I think The X Factor took full advantage of that just knowing that I was trying to lose that tag," he said.
"But eventually when I got through to the live shows I did lose that tag and I'm happy to be just myself now.
"I'm not Scott Bruton from X Factor, I'm not Scott Bruton the Blue Coat, I'm just Scott Bruton the West End singer."
Scott's mentor Simon was blamed for playing on his Blue Coat image, giving him 60s hit Yeh Yeh to sing in the first week.
Scott says: "Yeh Yeh was quite an appalling song if I've got to be completely honest.
"Dreamboats And Petticoats is more the Roy Orbisons and the Chuck Berrys of the era and there's some really powerful songs in the play.
"I get to sing songs like In Dreams by Roy Orbison and Run Around Sue and I just get to rock out on the guitar on stage. It's absolutely brilliant. It's absolutely amazing songs that have been gifted to me."
Hundreds of thousands of hopefuls queue up to audition for The X Factor every year, and only one can win.
"If I had to give one piece of advice to the contestants I'd say be honest with themselves and be honest with the judges because they know everything and they're the ones that can make your dream," says Scott.
He admits the fame that came with being on the show was thrilling.
Asked what the best thing about being on the show was he says: "I suppose when I came out of the show, just going back to all my family and all my friends and going 'Look! This is what I've done!'."
But he quickly adds: "Being able to help my mum and dad pay off bills and stuff like that, that was nice, because The X Factor helped me make the money to help support my family."
Scott admits that while he got a "buzz" out of singing live in front of 12 million people, it wasn't easy.
"I remember the first week of the live shows, all of us were backstage and we were all bricking ourselves, literally bricking ourselves.
"It was just the scariest time of our lives, just knowing you're going out to 12 million people live and you can't make a mistake because you'll be ridiculed for it.
"It's not just four people judging you, it's everybody in the country, everybody's judging you no matter what anybody says.
"It's very, very, very stressful."
While judges Simon, Cheryl, Dannii and Louis all have harsh criticism to deliver on the show, Scott says they're not the villains they're painted to be. Dannii Minogue is his favourite, "she is the loveliest person I've ever met in my life".
After making it though the auditions, boot camp and then the judges choice of 12 finalists from 24, the hopefuls all have to live in a house together and rehearse every day through out the week, but Scott insists that was fun.
"It was absolutely great. You're sharing a house with 20 other people that want the same dream as you.
"When I was there there was actually no conflict, everybody was just happy and joking and getting along with each other.
"I built up a reputation for being a bit of a prankster as well. Me and Eoghan used to prank Austin all the time. We used to draw moustaches on him, we'd put Vaseline all over his door handle, and we'd put cling film over his toilet seat, " he giggles.
Scott was eliminated in week three after being in the sing off against 39-year-old Daniel Evans, a widower who got through on the "housewives' favourite" vote.
But Scott says: "I think I went around the right time to be honest 'cause I was one of the lesser acts in the competition I suppose, if that's the right word to say.
"Maybe it was bad song choices, maybe it was just me, I don't know, but I'm luckier than most people to get to a stage like that and I've got no sort of chip on my shoulder about it.
"But I think everything happens for a reason. Whether I had different songs, different judges, I came out of that show for a reason and it allowed me to just disappear and just get down to work and just try getting one step closer to what I wanted. And now I feel I've got everything I wanted.
"I've got a decent job, I've got a record deal with Universal and I'm going to be working on a single and an album that's going to be released, so I feel like I've got everything that I set out to achieve in my life and I'm just really, really excited of what the future holds for me really."
And what does he hope that future might bring?
"I hope to get a single in the charts which will probably happen, it would be lovely to have a No 1, but I don't think that's gonna happen.
"I mean, it could be worse - I could be working as a Blue Coat still!"