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Fans blast cruel new X Factor auditions twist – Daily TV round-up

'Musical chairs' process is slammed.

'The X Factor' has been slammed for its new auditions twist, which found acts ousted from the competition despite thinking they'd got through.

During the boot camp section of the competition, acts were seen in succession and either sent home or through to the next round.

But once the six places allotted to each judge were full, it meant that acts yet to perform could then oust acts already 'put through' to the next stage.

The move led to much drama on the show, but fans and celebs were quick to denounce the new twist as cruel and exploitative.

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Singer Lily Allen tweeted: “When did become alright to f*** with people's minds. X factor has got fully mean.”

Comedian and presenter Dara O'Briain added: “Wow, X-factor seems to have become more exploitative than ever.”

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Viewer Kenny Doughty said: “X Factor is turning into Hunger Games. It’s like pulling wings off flies. Cruel process. Poor kids,” while Joanna Osman added: “I’m not into blood sports. This crap is cruel. Watched for years, not anymore.”

Several hopefuls were subject to the new twist, including Tenors of Rock and Katie Markham.



Lydia Lucy was also among those who lost her place.

She told the The Sun: “It still hasn’t sunk in. I’ve been absolutely devastated. If Simon Cowell was in front of me now I’d tell him to change the format back to how it was. This way is like dangling a carrot in front of someone and then taking it away.”

Louis Walsh caused additional consternation by axing Alejandro Fernandez-Holt, a huge fan and judge favourite.

“It was really emotionally and physically draining,” he said. “I’ve never gone through anything so stressful and intense as Bootcamp, because obviously it’s something I really, really wanted. Working your absolute hardest and having it taken away is quite tough.” [The Sun/Daily Mirror]

Also in today's press

'Strictly Come Dancing' convincingly won the ratings battle with 'The X Factor' over the weekend. 'Strictly's second live show drew 9.2 million viewers, 1.2 million more than its ITV rival. [Metro]

Scott Maslen, who plays Jack Branning in 'EastEnders', has said that budget cuts are to blame for the show's recent decline. “They made big cuts about three years ago and that affected the whole community working on EastEnders,” he said. “EastEnders has definitely dipped. Corrie has been getting the attention – and rightly so. They're doing really, really well.” [Daily Mirror]

Eddie Izzard has revealed that he's been attacked twice in the last year for his cross-dressing, once in London and once in New York. “It was bad. I was walking along, being myself and minding my own business,” he said. “I wasn’t doing anything wrong but because I was dressed in women’s clothes they set upon me. I was badly injured. It was horrible, I was very upset and frightened.” He added that the experience has driven him to try and become Mayor of London. “I want people to realise they can be different,” he added. [Sunday People]