Troublesome Twins Cause Uproar

Fuelling uproar amongst regular voters, X-factor contestants, John and Edward have secured a place in next weeks live show, resulting in ITV receiving 3,000 complaints.

The 18-year-old twins nicknamed ‘Jedward’, survived deadlock at the sixth stage of the competition last week, beating 18-year-old rival, Lucie Jones.

Speculation surrounds judge Simon Cowell over his decision to keep the twins in the competition arguably to boost rating figures, after he was seen in talks during the commercial break with Executive Producer Richard Holloway despite maintaining “I never get told the voting figures.”

Over 50 further complaints were made to Ofcom – the regulatory body for public service broadcasting, from viewers claiming the show appears to be ‘fixed’.

Cowell considers the twins “good entertainment” - the majority of the public are not so convinced. 35-year-old Bristolian builder, Andy Taylor refuses to watch X-Factor anymore, “John and Edward can’t sing or perform,” he said, “They’re the reason I stopped watching the show. I wanted Lucie to win – she’s genuinely talented unlike them.”

A love-hate relationship appears to have emerged between the public and the twins - Caroline Austin a 19-year-old student from Oxford Road, Bournemouth, finds the twins comparable to Marmite, saying, “You either love them or you hate them. I find them incredibly annoying yet look forward to their performance each week.”

The brothers from Dublin have accumulated a celebrity fan base, Peaches Geldof wore a ‘Jed We Can’ t-shirt at a recent live show. In addition Peter Andre and Britney Spears are also supporting them.

Controversially, Cowell has dramatically transformed his opinion of the boys, initially calling them “vile creatures” and now congratulating them on their performance and describing them as “good”.

They have an increasing appeal, Shirley Ann a 33-year-old Operations Manager from Alder Hills, Poole, claims she didn’t like them at first, but they‘ve grown on her. “It’s wrong that other contestants are being voted out over them, but they are fun to watch.”

Judge Louis Walsh, the boys mentor, says “the show is about fun” but the general perspective of viewers is that it’s a singing competition, “They would be better suited to Britain’s Got Talent” said, Kathleen Yates, a 73-year-old Volunteer from Queens Road, Bournemouth.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently expressed his views on ‘Jedward’ after admitting he was a fan of the show. He told a Manchester Radio Station he didn’t rate their singing ability, “I don’t think they’re very good.”

Cowell insists it would be an “utter disaster” if ‘Jedward’ were to win the competition, claiming he’d leave the country. Many of the public are also adamant that they would boycott watching the show if the twins won. “They’re awful,” says 29-year-old Michelle Church, a Cadbury’s Representative from Wallace Down Road, Poole. “I wouldn’t watch the show again if the twins came close to winning it. I want Olly Murs to win.”

‘Jedward’ have become public favourites despite erratic performances gaining 21,109 fans on the Official X-Factor website and with more than 200 groups dedicated to them on social networking site Facebook.

42-year-old Fruiterer, Paul West of Parkstone Avenue, Poole, says, “They are the worst one’s in the show, they’ve got to go this week. They have such an annoying persona – they would be better off on a show called ‘Twat of the Year’.”

Due to the dispute caused by the pair, a record breaking 16.6m viewers tuned in to see if they would finally be booted from the competition last Sunday.

Harry Evison, 17 and a student at Landsdowne college, Bournemouth, perceives Louis’s act as a ‘laugh’ and doesn’t seriously think they have a chance at winning.

In contrast 21-year-old Winton based Lily Dean, who works as a retail adviser in River Island, thinks that John and Edward might just go all the way. “The fact that they have got this far when they clearly can’t sing shows that the audience have stopping taking the show seriously. I think the show is getting a bit old.”

“It would be an absolute joke if they won” Says Martina Masterman, 40-year-old and manager of Scribbler card shop, Bournemouth. “Its completely ridiculous, it’s about talent and they clearly have none.”

There are fears for the future of reality television with Channel 4 planning to axe the once popular Big Brother next summer. It is likely that ITV’s ratings will suffer if the twins go on to win the show, which may lead to the disgruntled public boycotting X-Factor all together.

By Harriet Rose-Gale and Alice Jones