Singers with dreams of stardom gave it their best shot as the X Factor auditions rolled into Perth over the weekend.
Around 30 people queued up in the St John’s Shopping Centre on Saturday to show off their talent with more giving it a go on Sunday in open mic sessions at the Twa Tams pub in the city.
The X Factor team said the shopping centre auditions had been a great success but were unwilling to predict if any potential stars had been discovered diplomatically saying there was “some talent” and a “good atmosphere”.
The singers were shielded from the public gaze by a screen and some shoppers were less charitable about what they could hear.
“I think there must be a torture chamber back there from the sounds that have been coming out”, said one man, though even he conceded a few sounded “pretty good”.
All those who took part will now need to wait to see if they are called back with a spokesperson explaining: “If people impress the visiting X Factor production team then they could be in with a chance of auditioning in front of the judges themselves when the televised auditions take place this summer.”
The X Factor, which will return to television later this year, has been the springboard to fame for a number of people, whether they won the contest or not.
The charts of recent years have been littered with solo artists and groups who started out with that first audition including Leona Lewis, Alexandra Burke, Little Mix, Shayne Ward, JLS, Olly Murs and One Direction.
