X-Factor
A former ‘X Factor’ semi-finalist has made it through to this year’s boot camp.
Scot Rikki Loney hopes it will be third time lucky after narrowly missing out on a place in the live auditions of the talent show twice before.
The Scottish singer impressed judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Cheryl Cole last night (12.09.09) as he blasted out a version of Otis Reading’s ‘These Arms of Mine’.
He told the judging panel: "A year's passed now and I'm back and think I'm more confident than I was last year. And I want to prove to you that I can go the whole way this time."
Last year, Scot almost made the final 24 but Simon changed his mind at the last minute and gave the spot to 15-year-old Liam Payne instead.
At the time Cheryl and Dannii were outraged by the music mogul’s change of heart.
In 2004, when Sharon Osbourne was a judge on the show, a 16-year-old Scot lost out to a place in the live shows when she opted to put the Irish rocker Tabby Callaghan through instead.
He said: "After last year, it took a good three, four months to get myself back and decide that singing is what I wanted to do and it's such a struggle and it's so hard to bring yourself back to this but I want it that much. "I've never wanted anything so much."
Dannii and Cheryl had tears in their eyes as they watched the 21-year-old Glaswegian - who works as a singer full time - perform in front the life audience which included his mother.
Impressed with the vocals, Simon apologised to Scot and admitted he had made the wrong decision last year. He flew through to bootcamp after receiving four yeses from the panel.
The auditions were recorded earlier this year and it is rumoured Scot has made it to the final 24 contestants and has become firm friends with his mentor Cheryl Cole - who is overseeing the boys category.
Tagged in The X Factor