time for the annual X factor.

Quite like Terry and Amelia from NUNTHORPE so far.

Even though it is not real music, Simon Cowell is the devil incarnate and they are all just pub singers.

Still some good voices in there.

An awful programme on so many levels and the sooner this trash is gone the better.

I like it. Quality trash tv. Beats watching Hollyoaks with the Mrs.

Just wish they would be more honest about their reasons for putting people through instead of hiding behind the frankly ridiculous pretence that it's a serious singing competition. When people are put through because they are absolutely useless but have interesting tv personnas they should just admit it.

X factor is like the Rugby Union World Cup.

Every rugby league fan rushes to say how crap it is.

But they all watch it.

Agreed.

Is it exploitation of the mentally challenged - possibly in the audition stages when it verges on a paying audience visiting an asylum for entertainment as they used to do in Victorian days.

Does it uncover serious singing talent - occasionally, and once again I wheel forth Will Young (not X Factor ???) and Leona Lewis, I can't think of any others though.

Does it provide acres and acres of press coverage and the sort of saturation of the "Womens Weekly Magazines" that a million pound advertising budget couldn't provide - absolutely.

Is it just a giant mincing machine of talent for Sony who need the constant flow of would be singers and more importantly the immediate market research of popularity that they just could not gather in any other way culminating in one huge money making opportunity in December every year - Yep.

Is it absolutely predictable, was anyone genuinely surprised last night when some of the failed auditionees were invited back to join forces to make "a band" (despite that being my least favourite word to describe a group of non instrument players), did anyone call their mother back from the kitchen after she thought it was all over, "Mother, come back quick, Louis' asking some of them to come back..."

Its all of the above, and yes, I still watch it every week.

Surely the whole point of X factor and the whole Simon Cowell thing is that you actually appreciate how good some of the real talent is out there such as Adele.

When someone like that comes along it puts the X factor genre firmly in its place.

You cannot have good music without being able to compare it to bad.

I agree that there is certainly an "X Factor Genre" based on a pool of not quite good enough talent, what I do find quite sad though is the sight of 18 year olds declaring that their life's ambitions are crushed beyond repair when they are rejected from one bad audition, I sort of get the idea that these are kids who have never had anyone say "no" to them in their life so far and if that really is the case then they have chosen the wrong career path - one that will be littered with rejection slips regardless of how good their talent is.

we have a winner here.
i can honestly say i have never and will never sit through a full programme of this. obviously i catch a glimpse and that is enough believe me.
also just when it finishes you forget that the missus is getting ready for a new series of britains got talentless garbage.
and so the cycle begins again .........................

To be honest though i think you are picking up on a symptom of modern society and parenting.

Teenagers and young adults who have had a lifetime of having what you want and being able to live off mum and dad ( and consequently just daydream about being a celebrity) are in for a very rude awakening.

The time for realism is coming and is going to be very hard for the current crop of kids.

I started watching episodes of the american X Factor recently. It is streets ahead of the british version in pretty much every area: the talent, the judges, the overall production.

They are still in the audition phases over there, but already there are a couple of singers that are miles better than any of the singers in our show. Take a look on a popular video site for Marcus Canty and Melanie Amaro. Some genuine talent, I think.

Oh, and LA Reid is awesome