quite.precious: Manchester Central has the X-factor

Sunday 9 December 2012

Manchester Central has the X-factor

For the first time, the X-factor final was filmed outside London. And as I had recently meet with the venue - Manchester Central - to discuss possible collaborations, I was lucky enough to be offered two complimentary tickets to Saturday's final show, including an overnight stay at the beautiful Midland hotel, just round the corner.

And it was really exciting! The evening kicked off with a reception for about 75 people at 17:00. Drinks were flowing, and canapes and bowl food were served. Service was brilliant and the whole team made us feel welcome and well looked after. Then at 19:15 we were led into the Central Hall which seated 10,000 people - past long queues of people, who had been patiently standing in the rain to get in. Our seats were to left of the stage; not quite as close as I had hoped but nevertheless with good views. Before the show Caroline Flack and Ollie Murs practised for the Xtra factor and the audience was given instructions not to take photos during the filming and to try to not walk around during filming either.

It became clear very quickly who the audience's favourite was: James Arthur received most cheers - while Christopher Maloney was initially booed. During the first break, the compere pointed out that it really wasn't very nice to boo anyone and surprisingly this actually had the desired effect!

During Jahmene Douglas' duet with Nicole Scherzinger, Nicole's microphone didn't work. So, they had to share one. She was visibly pissed off and I'm sure ITV's AV crew got a feisty telling off after the incidence. It was quite surprising, too, that nobody was near the stage to help out with another mic. Then during the final scenes one of the cameramen fell over on stage.

Overall, it was a great experience. We got to see Kylie Minogue, Kelly Clarkson and Rita Ora perform and as it was a live show, there were only the ad breaks were nothing much was happening. The announcement of the decision at the end was nail-bitingly exciting - and I think everyone in the hall (or at least the vast majority) were relieved to see Christopher come third.

After the show we were treated to more drinks, cakes and a cheese board courtesy of Manchester Central.
Just a few more hours until the winner of the 2012 X-factor gets announced!