They have 'The X Factor'

So it’s that time of year again, when our Saturday nights are sorted from now until Christmas. Yes, it’s the return of The X Factor. Now in its tenth season, it never fails to top the ratings, and create headlines in the news. Whether you love it loathe it, you can’t deny that the show has given us some amazing performances through out the years, and here are some of my favourites:

Shayne Ward: ‘Over The Rainbow’

Way back in 2005, Shayne Ward won the second series with his rugged good looks and beautiful falsetto voice; he charmed the judges and viewers alike. 

Leona Lewis: ‘All By Myself’

Easily the best female vocalist the show has ever seen, Leona’s voice, combined with her sweet and humble personality, easily won the third series.

Ray Quinn: ‘My Way’

It was difficult to be a contestant in the same year as Leona, but Ray proved he deserved to be runner up  his all with his rendition of the Frank Sinatra classic in the finale.

Ruth Lorenzo: ‘Purple Rain’

One of my favourite ‘save me’ performances. With her X Factor life on the line, Ruth gave it her all, and she got through to the next week.

Alexandra Burke and Beyoncé Knowles: ‘Listen’

Possibly the best finale duets the show has seen. You can really see how emotional Alexandra was singing with Beyoncé, which just added to the amazingness of this performance.

Danyl Johnson: ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’

It was the first year that the judges held auditions with an audience, and Danyl came on and showed everyone else how you do it.

JLS: ‘Working My Way Back To You/Forgive Me Girl’

Yes, I’m choosing JLS over One Direction. JLS weren’t just manufactured on the show, which made them, in my opinion, more polished and together boyband when they performed.

Matt Cardle: ‘The First Time (Ever I Saw Your Face)’

I’m not really a fan of Roberta Flack’s song, but Matt’s falsetto vocals give me the chills every time I hear it.

Little Mix: ‘Don’t Let Go’

The only group to ever win the show in nine seasons. They really progressed and got better week after week. They also gave brilliant harmonies in this performance, and proved why they won it.

James Arthur: ‘The Power Of Love’

My favourite X Factor contestant ever. He just has so much passion when he sings, and his voice always gave me chills when he sang. I just felt every one of his performances. So it was a difficult decision to choose just one, but ‘Power Of Love’ is it.

So, what were your favourite X Factor performance?

Dear Miley, What Were You Thinking?!?

Watching Miley Cyrus’s VMA performance of We Can’t Stop/Blurred Lines, all I can think of as she gyrates on Robin Thicke, twerks, rub a foam finger across her lady parts, sticks her tongue out, quite a lot, while in a nude coloured bikini is, ‘What in the name of god is she doing? What happened to the beautiful, sweet Hannah Montana?’

A lot of her fans who are defending her are saying, ‘she’s 20, she’s just growing up and trying to shed her Disney image’. I am not a prude, and I have no issues with a bit of sexiness and raunchiness on stage. But what Miley did was not sexy or raunchy. It was trashy, embarrassing and extremely uncomfortable to watch (just ask Will Smith’s children). And that was just her singing. Is she heading down a path of self destruction like other child stars before her?

Oh wait! Doesn’t she have a new album coming out? Yes, she does! She clearly set out to get the publicity, and boy did she get it! Even though *NSYNC reformed for the first time in ten years, in a blink and you’ll miss it performance, it was Miley that EVERYONE was talking about. She even just tweeted ‘Smilers! My VMA performance had 306.000 tweets per minute. That's more than the blackout or Superbowl! #fact.’ There really is no such thing as bad publicity huh?!?

If her album does well on the back of this performance, what does this say about society, and the kind of people that teenage girls look up to? If I had a daughter I personally would not encourage her to look up to someone like Miley Cyrus. She is so clearly desperate for fame that she would degrade herself in such a fashion. I can’t help compare her to her peer Demi Lovato. Now, there is someone who has been through a lot and come out the other side, and is a good influence on her fans because of it. She is open about her past of anorexia and self harm so she can reach out and help them. She works hard, puts out decent songs, and doesn’t feel the need to sexualise herself in order to sell albums.

Miley's VMA performance

Miley when she was young and innocent

Celebrity Big Brother

Last night saw the return of Celebrity Big Brother on Channel 5. Thirteen celebrities entered the house, and as usual you they were a predictable mix of: the soap stars, model, good looking guy, a loose woman, the reality star, a singer from a pop band, the one that came all the way from America, and the one where you think ‘How in the name of god did they pass the pysch test?’

Here’s a list of this summer’s contestants:

1: Louie Spence

He is the star of the Pineapple Dance Studio. He is very hyper and extroverted, flamboyant, and quite simply, annoying. His colleague, Andrew Stone has a similar personality and he went into the house last year. He was the first person to be voted out of the house.

 

2: Lauren Harries

She is a former child prodigy who underwent a sex change when she was 22. She comes across as extremely fragile and I’m not too sure how she is going to mentally cope with being in the house.

3: Sophie Anderton

The former model and self confessed ‘wild child’ is known for being feisty and speaking her mind. She should be the one that will cause some fireworks in the house.

I should note that these three were the first into the house, and they were summoned by Big Brother into a secret part of the house, where they get to spy on the other contestants for 24 hours, and then get to nominate one for eviction.

4 and 5: Vicky Entwistle and Bruce Jones

It’s Les and Janice Battersby from Corrie!! Reunited!! I think that this is the first time that an on screen couple have gone into the house. While they are playing as individuals, it will be interesting to see will they stick together when it comes to game play.

6: Courtney Stodden

The 19 year old American reality star is most known for marrying her then 50 year old husband, when she was just 16. She loves nothing more than being the centre of attention, and everything she does is done to make herself stand out. While she could be entertaining to watch, I’m not sure how well she’ll go down with the rest of the housemates.

7: Abz Love

He is from the dysfunctional boyband 5ive, who have recently reunited on ‘The Big Reunion’. When Emma asked, ‘You’ve just done a tour, why are you going into the house?’ His response: ‘Because I still need the money. You gotta love his honesty anyway.

8: Danielle Meagher (Marr)

All of Britain collectively went ‘Huh?!? Who the hell is she?’ Well, she was on Irish reality show ‘Dublin Housewives’ and owns her own cosmetic surgery company. While she is not known, I think people will like her out going personality as they get to know her.

9: Dustin Diamond

The ten year old in me instinctively screamed ‘Oh my god it’s Screeeeech from Saved By The Bell!’ Very surprising to see him going into the house, but he came across as a nice, humble guy. And you never know, if he gets to the final, maybe there’ll be a reunion with Zack, Kelly and A.C ;-)

10: Charlotte Crosby

Charlotte from Geordie Shore is probably one of England’s biggest reality stars. Judging by the reaction from the crowd as she was entering the house, people love her. I think she is definitely in the running to win the show.

11: Mario Falcone

Mario is from another reality show ‘The Only Way Is Essex’. He is hated on that show, so maybe this is his chance to put across another side to him, and turn public opinion around.

12: Carol McGiffin

The ‘Loose Woman.’ She comes across as someone who is a lot of fun, but also not afraid to speak her mind. I have a feeling she’ll be very entertaining in the house. Another contender to win the show.

13: Ron Atkinson

Football manager ‘Big Ron’ was the last person to enter the house. Regarding the previous controversy surrounding him, he is a big wild card, and I’m not sure how he will get on in the house.

All in all, there’s a good mix of people in that house. But there seems to be an absence of a couple to do a ‘showmance’. Either way, I’m looking forward to putting my feet up for the next few weeks!

Weight: There's Just Too Much Of It!

I ordered a lovely pink and white dress from A-Wear for €65. It was a size 18. When it arrived yesterday I took it out of the bag and I thought ‘yay, this looks big enough, it will definitely fit me!’ It didn’t. Cue the frustration and the tears.

My weight has been a constant battle of mine ever since I can remember. I am constantly going up and down, and not by a couple of pounds, which is normal for most women, but by a couple of stone. And at 5’1, the weight just goes everywhere. I despise my big flabby arms and my huge muffin top.

You see, I get to a certain point where I think into myself ‘I need to loose weight’. I hit the gym, eat healthily, feel and look better. Each time I tell myself that I’m going to keep this up. But I also reach a point where I loose that motivation. I stop exercising as much and I’m not as careful with what I eat. The weight I lost creeps back up.

At nearly 14 stone I’m the heaviest I’ve been for a long time. It doesn’t help that I sprained my knee a month ago and have just been hobbling around the place ever since. I couldn’t have exercised even if I wanted to. While I’m still not a 100%, I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and start doing something about it. It is only I that can do this. And this is what I plan to do: While I won’t join the gym for another few weeks until my knee is properly healed, I am going to start walking again, even if it is just a stroll to begin with, and building it up to power walks. What I have more control over is my eating habits. Out with the taytos, chocolates and pizzas (sob!) and in with the rice cakes, pitta breads and stir-frys (boo!). I am still going to have the occasional treat, just to reward myself for my good behaviour of course!

I am also considering keeping this dress as another incentive to loose weight. I will give myself a time limit of Christmas for me to be able to fit into it. I know that it will feel amazing the day I finally fit into the dress that finally sparked the motivation I needed to get up and do something! I am not looking to be a size 0. I'd be happy with a 12 - 14. I just want to look in the mirror and feel confident with how I look.

The dress from A-Wear

Boybands and Teenage Girls

After watching the documentary ‘Crazy About One Direction’, I just kept thinking that this kind of craziness isn’t really anything new. As long as there have been boybands, there have been teenage girls going crazy for them. For example, a woman tattooed Westlife’s faces on her back, and sadly, two girls committed suicide when Take That split up in 1996. For most teenage girls, being into a boyband is right of passage, and simply a part of growing up. For my age group, we used to get 'Smash Hits' and 'Top of The Pops' magazines and take out the posters and put them on the wall. We watched Saturday morning TV to see our favourite group.

 Vicky, with Westlife tattoed on her back

I am a huge Westlife fan. I have been since the very beginning, when I was fourteen years old. I think anyone who knows me associates me with my undying loyalty to the group. I’ve seen them seven times in concert. I also won a competition to meet the group at their World Of Our Own album signing at HMV in Dublin. I was heartbroken when I found out that my favourite member, Shane Filan, had a girlfriend. My first ever concert was Westlife when they performed at The Rose Of Tralee Festival when I was sixteen. Now, Shane is performing his new single on The Rose Of Tralee next Tuesday night, and all I want to do is to finally meet him properly. Even though it is fifteen years later and I am now twenty nine, I will always be that fourteen year old teenage girl when it comes to Westlife.­

While I consider myself to be a ‘normal’ Westlife fan rather than on the ‘obsessive’ side that ‘Directioners’ were portrayed as on the documentary, I can still relate to what it’s like be a fan of a boyband. My favourite moment of the documentary was towards the end when the fans got really emotional when they got their tickets for the tour. For the fans, it is a big deal. Last year Westlife had their last ever concert at Croke Park. I was lucky enough to be there as the tickets sold out in four minutes. You just feel like you have that rare golden ticket into Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Nothing beats the feeling of going to see your favourite band live.

Each fandom of a particular boyband feels like they created something original and special, and I’m sorry to tell One Direction fans, you aren’t that different. ‘Shipping’ came up on the One Direction documentary. This refers to a section of their fans wanting members Harry and Louis (known as ‘Larry’) to have a gay relationship. They have created fan art and fan fiction to go along with this 'relationship'. But this is nothing new. With Westlife, fans had the same thing with Shane and Nicky (known as ‘Shnicky’).

But what is different with ‘Directioners’ is social media, and in particular, Twitter. Collectively One Direction have over sixty million followers. It just creates hysteria within the fandom. I don’t think a day goes by where something to do with One Direction trending. They feel like they have personal access to the band, and use it to find out where they are and interact with other fans. It definitely increases their popularity, but I think that if Twitter was around at the height of Take That and Westlife’s fame, it would have had the same affect. But my god are some of the fans scary and take their loyalty to the extreme! The documentary showed that they have tweeted that they will kill themselves if Harry Styles won’t follow them, as well as sending Taylor Swift death threats because of her past relationship with Harry. This is just the tip of the iceberg. After the documentary, #RIPLarryShippers was trending, as there was a rumour that fourty two fans killed themselves after the way they were portrayed in the documentary, which isn’t true at all. Something like this is extremely frightening, as it could give other impressionable fans ideas.

While it’s good to be a fan and wanting to support them goes a long with it, being a part of a ‘fandom that could kill you’ is not. One Direction mania looks like it isn’t slowing down any time soon, so Directioners, all I can say is just sit back and enjoy the ride while it lasts, and don’t get caught up in any hared, disrespect and obsessive behaviour, be the kind of fan your boys can be proud of!

Cyberbullying: It Needs To Stop.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me” is a phrase that we hear constantly when we are kids. But the irony is that words can be more hurtful and have longer lasting effects than any broken bones. The high profile suicides of school girls Erin Gallagher here in Donegal and Irish Phoebe Prince, living in Massachusetts, have highlighted the damage that bullying can have on a young life. Just last week, another young girl took her own life after being bullied on the site ask.fm.

While the internet and social media is a fantastic way to get information instantly and a great way to keep in touch with people, it clearly has a darker side. It allows someone the freedom to sit behind a screen and say whatever despicable, hurtful things they want. It gives them a sense of bravery and emotional disconnection that would not necessarily be there if they were face to face with that person.

I went through my teens getting bullied, mostly by my so called friends, and from my experience, the bullying stays with you long after it has stopped. At that age, your peers are the biggest influence in your life. You’re growing, and discovering who you are. Being bullied at this stage leaves you feeling worthless and alone. You feel useless and think that you have no one. You believe everyone hates you, and you end up hating yourself. But I feel like it was easier for me in a way because I didn’t grow up with Facebook, and smart phones weren’t available. I could go home, close my bedroom door, listen to music, and try to put it out of my head. But with technology, there isn’t that escape anymore. Someone could contact you through your phone or computer whenever they want. Even as I’m writing this, I see that one person has called another an ‘ugly f***k’ on Twitter after she posted a picture of herself, and it makes me sick to my stomach that someone can be so hurtful about another person that they’ve never even met.

So what can be done to prevent this? Unfortunately, there is no miracle solution. While there is a proposal by ministers to closely monitor cyber bullying in schools, it doesn’t get to root of it. Should cyber bullying become a police matter? Should these people be brought before a judge and cautioned? It’s a difficult question to answer. The ‘easy’ solution is that cyber bullying should be stopped before it gets to that level.

Most parents give their children too much freedom and there’s not enough supervision when it comes to monitoring their online activities. Ultimately, parents should talk to their children, teach them that using the internet is a privilege and show them how to use it in the right way. Be more vigilant when it comes to what children are doing online. If they find that they’re child is bullying someone, take away their phone/laptop, anything that they can use to contact that person. Sit them down and try and explain to them the hurt that they are causing, talk to them about their peers who have taken their own lives of because of this. I don’t think that they really do think about the emotional consequences.

If your child is being bullied, to protect them, you do the exact same thing by taking away their phone and laptop, to stop them from being contacted. Make them feel like they can talk to you, but more importantly, that they are safe and loved. Studies show that people who are bullied at a young age tend to become more driven and turn out to be the most hardworking, successful people, because they feel like they have something to prove.

I also feel that there needs to be more education in schools when it comes to the effects of bullying. I think schools would greatly benefit from someone giving a talk about their experience, to show how bullying can really affect someone, which could make teenagers think twice before they bully. Also, someone needs to come in and talk to them about suicide, and how, no matter how low you are feeling, it is not the answer.

To anyone reading this who is being bullied, I urge you to talk to someone who you trust, to make realise that you are loved and you are not alone in this world. You are beautiful. The probelm is with them, and not you. From my experience, these girls have deep rooted insecurities that they feel the need to make other people feel like them. I promise you it will get better. It did for me.

10 Things Every Man Should Know about Irish Women

As a race, us Irish women are definitely unique in our ways. But while men might think we're from a different planet sometimes, we're not that difficult to figure out. From our love of Pennys and fake tan to not being able to take a compliment, here are ten things that guys should know about us:

10. We go in packs to the toilet.

On a night out, going to the toilets alone is a foreign concept. Whether it's to check that our mascara isn't running, or to make sure our hairstyle is still intact. We also love to gossip about how to get that cute guy we spotted across the bar to notice us, or to vent how our ex's new girlfriend keeps staring us. We congregate to the toilets to put the world to rights!

9: We love our soaps.

We might give out about how ridiculous Fair City and the rest of the soaps are sometimes, but we are still addicted to them. It's a great way to unwind after our day, as well as a good water cooler topic amongst friends and colleagues. And while we're engrossed in the latest Carrigstown/Walford/Dales drama you'll be wise not interrupt us. Unless it's to bring us a cup of tea and a biscuit.

 

8: We like to drink.

We like to think that we can drink guys under the table. We give it a good try. But most of us can’t. We're usually too afraid to look at our phone the next morning for fear we'll find messages that we drunkenly sent to our ex, and we wait with dread for a call from our friend to fill us in on what happened as we cringe down the phone. After a few we also like to think we're Carrie Bradshaw in high heels and Beyoncé on the dance floor. But in reality we always have a pair of flats in our bag for when we can't walk anymore.

  

7: Fake tan is essential.

Being Irish means we have very pale skin. Therefore, we need feed fake tan to look more like a human being than Casper the friendly ghost. We feel like bronzed goddesses with it on and we're not bothered if it smells or gets all over our bed sheets. We're more concerned if it starts streaking on us and gets patchy on a night out.

6: We're up for the craic. 

The expression 'she can talk for Ireland' didn't come from nowhere. We definitely have a unique sense of humor and a way of constantly keeping the conversation going. We love nothing more than a good bit of banter and having the craic with the lads and there's no doubt that we can give back as good as we get. It's this quality that a lot of guys seem to love most about us.

5: We love Penneys.

Despite knowing that we're probably going to see three different people wearing the same thing as us on the same day, we still shop religiously at Penneys. Why? Because we love a bargain, and the recession made it 'cool' to shop there. From everyday t-shirts, to cute dresses for your daughter/niece, and little pieces that can brighten up your home. Pennys has it all, and at a low price.

4: We are competitve.

We can get just as into supporting our county in the GAA as you guys. On match day, we put on our jerseys with pride and end up screaming at the TV if we get a get a goal and shouting if the opposing team gets a point. Or if we're in the local and see a person in the other teams jersey, then we'll get into a light-hearted slanging match with them, and we have a good gloat if our county wins.

3: We love to complain about the weather.

We love to complain about a lot of things, but weather has to be at the top of our list. It’s too hot/too cold/too windy. And it's usually the person behind us in the queue that we complain about it to. And trying to decide what to wear for the day when you've no idea what's the weather's going to like in an hours time is impossible. The sun is shining when you leave the house so we think it's safe not to bring a jacket. But we end up getting soaked into the skin by the time we get home again.

2: We can't take a compliment.

We love complimenting others, but when it comes to someone complimenting us, we just don't know how to take it. If someone says to us 'you're looking well,' the usual response is 'will you go way outta that.' Or 'I love your top'. 'This old thing? I've had it ages!' Whether it's our modesty, or our fear of looking a bit big headed, we can never seem to just say thank you when a compliment comes our way.

1: We love a bit of sunshine.

Saying our weather is unpredictable is an understatement. So when the sun does shine we take great advantage of those five minutes. Out comes the shorts and vest tops. We lather on the suncream. And if we can't get to the beach or a beer garden, we bring a kitchen chair to the back garden and sit out. And if we forget to put on the sun cream, we are definitely going to be sore and as red as a tomato by the end of the day. And we wear our sun burn with pride, because we've proved we made the most out of it.