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Out with the old and in with the new has supposedly been the theme for this year’s ‘X Factor’, yet nearly six weeks in it appears that this wasn’t the strictest of briefs. As Louis Walsh sits on the judging panel (alongside Gary Barlow, Nicole Sherzinger and Sharon Osborne) for the tenth time, still relentlessly trying to ‘get down with the kids’ with his slightly awkward patter, the show continues with the same formats from previous years – closed auditions, audience auditions, judges’ houses – albeit in a new order and with the occasional ‘twist’.
What 2013’s competition lacks in fresh ideas it makes up for in sob stories, judges’ spats and cringeworthy styling, however. At the forefront of this year’s Cheese Factor is Kingsland Road, an all-male fivesome named after the east London location around which the troupe are based.
The boys’ undercuts, double denim and Harry Styles looks are sure to be a hit with tween girls, but to anyone over the age of 16 they’re about as cool as Nick Clegg. Their boot camp audition of Stevie Wonder’s ‘For Once In My Life’ was a showcase of synchronised jazz hands that would have had the entertainment manager at Butlin’s wincing. Less nauseating scenes have been witnessed on ‘Embarassing Bodies’.