The curse of X Factor! From first winner Steve Brookstein’s chart failure to James Arthur’s homophobic rap and Rebecca Ferguson being blocked from cancer treatment, FEMAIL reveals the contestants it all went wrong for…

• X Factor has been cancelled after 17 years and more than 200 live contestants
• While a handful have seen chart success others have launched TV careers 
• But many have been ‘cursed’ by the show – including first winner Steve Brookstein and James Arthur who have both made controversial comments

After 17 years as a stalwart of British television, Simon Cowell has pulled the plug on The X Factor.

The show has seen more than 200 contestants reach the live shows over 15 seasons, with some huge musical success stories including One Direction and Little Mix coming from the programme.

Other contestants have launched successful television careers – including Loose Women Stacey Solomon and Brenda Edwards as well as presenters Rylan and Olly Murs. Some, including Rak-Su’s Myles Stephenson and Fleur East have made triumphant foray’s into reality TV. 

But what about those who haven’t been as lucky?  For many the show has acted as a curse, with former  stars Jedward and Katie Waissel reacting to news that the show has been axed this morning with glee. 

Many of the acts have been dropped by their label after poor record sales, even household names including Alexandra Burke, while dozens of the winners have failed to chart after their initial successful single from winning the show. 

STEVE BROOKSTEIN

The show’s first ever winner Steve Brookstein, 52, reached number one with his first single, a cover of Phil Collin’s Against All Odds in 2004. But faced little success after that 

The show’s first ever winner Steve Brookstein, 52, reached number one with his first single, a cover of Phil Collin’s Against All Odds in 2004. 

But he soon became a one-hit wonder, after his second single Fighting Butterflies peaked at number 193 and his third Don’t Give Up, failed to chart at all.

His albums followed a similar path. After reaching number one with covers album Heart and Soul he released  40,000 Things which peaked at 165 and Forgotten Man in 2014 which didn’t chart. 

In the same year, he released the book Getting Over the X, which dished the dirt on the behind the scenes action from the show. In it he claimed  two of Simon Cowell’s ex-girlfriends – Jackie St Clair and Sinitta – tried to seduce him in a dressing room, as the music industry boss ‘just sat there grinning’. 

Outside of his musical failures – which include a 2010 cancelled due to lack of interest gig at Cafe Nero in Ipswich – and a stint singing on the Portsmouth to Bilbao car ferry – he’s caused controversy with his comments about abortions, trans people and gay people.

In a 2015 online rant, Steve tweeted that abortions were only supported by ‘weak men and crazy women’ adding that were the result of ‘irresponsible shagging’ and people who have them should ‘live with shame’.

On the same day described those in support of abortion as ‘radical feminists with mental health issues’ called transgender people ‘idiots’.

He has also been vocal in his lack of support for the show. In December 2009, he backed a campaign to stop The X Factor’s winner from reaching Christmas number 1 saying he wanted to see  Rage Against the Machine’s ‘Killing in the Name’ reach the top of the chart, as Cowell has ‘ruined Christmas’.     

Other controversial comments include him saying the X Factor was ‘fixed’ and that he was dropped for ‘not playing the game’.  

JAMES ARTHUR

Unlike many X Factor winners, James Arthur saw chart success after coming first in the eighth series of the show in 2012 – but he was still dropped by Simon Cowell’s label following a string of controversial comments.

Unlike many X Factor winners, James Arthur saw chart success after coming first in the eighth series of the show in 2012 – but he was still dropped by Simon Cowell’s label following a string of controversial comments.

His winner’s single Impossible, is one of the biggest ever hits to come from the show and went triple platinum in the UK, while his first three albums all made number one or two in the British charts.

However, things started to go wrong when he branded rapper Micky Worthless a ‘f***** queer’ in a diss track, and used the bar ‘I’m gonna blow up your family like I’m a terrorist’ in another song.  

He further cemented himself out of his bosses graces in a series of Twitter spats. In one he branded  One Directions’ Louis Tomlinson  ‘a marketing product’, while he also fell out with fellow X Factor alumni Matt Cardle and Lucy Spraggan.

Elsewhere, he branded Scottish comedian Frankie Boyle ‘as funny as aids’. 

Despite this, he managed to get another deal with SyCo in 2016, but his recent  chart performance has been lacking, with 2021 single September only reaching 51 in the UK. 

REBECCA FERGUSON 

Ordeal: Rebecca revealed she suffered a miscarriage earlier in her music career, additionally claiming she was ‘forced to work through’ the ordeal, despite ‘pleading to them’ to let her recover

One of the most outspoken critics of the show, Rebecca Ferguson,  34, went to the Metropolitan Police earlier this year to report allegations of harassment against a male figure in the industry.  

The mother-of-three, who rose to prominence after placing second on the 2010 series of the show, has recently demanded a parliamentary inquiry into the music industry and called for greater regulation to protect artists from ‘bullying’ agents and managers.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident, Rebecca threw her support behind fellow X Factor contestant Katie Waissel after the singer claimed she had been sexually assaulted by a member of the show’s team.

Earlier this month, she claimed music bosses banned her from having cancerous cells removed from her body because the 10 day recovery period was too long and she was warned she could be ‘permanently disabled’. 

In May, the singer revealed she suffered a miscarriage earlier in her music career, additionally claiming she was ‘forced to work through’ the ordeal, despite ‘pleading to them’ to let her recover.,

LEON JACKSON

Scotland native Leon Jackson, 32, shocked audiences when he beat Rhydian Roberts to win the fourth series of X Factor in 2007.

Scotland native Leon Jackson, 32, shocked audiences when he beat Rhydian Roberts to win the fourth series of X Factor in 2007.

Within a year after winning he was dropped by SyCo after a series of flops and was quoted to say the decision was ‘heartbreaking’ as he felt like he’d done ‘nothing wrong’. 

He hasn’t released an album since 2008 and his last single 2009’s Stargazing didn’t chart, but he has written songs in the time since, including for Voice UK winner Vince Kidd.  

MATT CARDLE

Matt has also had to deal with personal struggles. He was admitted to The Priory on Boxing Day 2013 to be treated for addiction to prescription drugs and alcohol

Former painter and decorator Matt Cardle, 38, triumphed in the 2010 series after winning over the voters of Britain with his down-to-earth demeanour and collection of flat caps.

The Essex stud’s winner’s single – a cover of Biffy Clyro’s only ballad, Many of Horror (retitled When We Collide) – regained Syco’s grip on the festive top spot, where it stayed for three weeks.

It sold an impressive 170,000 copies in its first two days on sale.

Matt’s debut album, Letters, received a warm reception and stayed on the chart for 16 weeks, peaking at number two.

Unfortunately, the former handy-man’s follow-up singles fared less well and he parted ways with Syco and Columbia records in 2012.

Since then he’s released a couple of albums, collaborated with former Spice Girl Mel C and continues to tour, but he has not seen the same success as the act that came third in 2010 – One Direction.

Matt has also had to deal with personal struggles. He was admitted to The Priory on Boxing Day 2013 to be treated for addiction to prescription drugs and alcohol.

He said at the time, ‘I was so out of it – I was like a zombie.’

JOE MCELDERRY

Joe’s contract with Syco expired in 2011 and wasn’t renewed. He has spoken of his unhappiness about his time with the label but said the split was ‘amicable’.

Following his win in 2009, Geordie Joe McElderry was caught up in one of the X Factor’s biggest controversies.

The 30-year-old’s winner’s single, a cover of Miley Cyrus’s The Climb, was the first to be beaten to the Christmas top spot for four years.

It was pipped to the post by Rage Against The Machine’s Killing In The Name, following a social media campaign in protest against the programme’s grip on the Christmas number one tradition.

Joe’s debut album, Wide Awake, peaked at a respectable number three but dropped out of the top 40 within three weeks. In total, it had sold just over 100,000 copies by December 2010.

Joe’s contract with Syco expired in 2011 and wasn’t renewed. He has spoken of his unhappiness about his time with the label but said the split was ‘amicable’.

However, he went on to sign with Decca, with his album Classic reaching No.2 in the UK album charts in 2011, selling over 250,000 copies.

Joe later hit back about the criticism he received regarding his weight while posing for Gay Times. Speaking to Loose Women, he said: ‘This whole body shaming thing is just ridiculous it’s gone beyond a joke now. 

BEN HAENOW 

After winning The X Factor back in 2014, Ben Haenow was dropped by SyCo a mere 13 months after beating Fleur East to the winner’s title. In May 2018 Ben, from Croydon, told MyLondon of he struggled after being dropped and ‘lost his way’

After winning The X Factor back in 2014, Ben Haenow was dropped by SyCo a mere 13 months after beating Fleur East to the winner’s title.   

In May 2018 Ben, from Croydon, told MyLondon of he struggled after being dropped and ‘lost his way’.

He said: ‘It’s a crazy, crazy thing to be involved in, to go from being unknown to being on TV. It’s an incredible thing.

‘You are kind of in a bubble for that year. Once that bubble bursts, it’s a hard thing.

‘After a little while I didn’t really go out.

‘I’m not going to say I slipped into depression [but] it was really hard to deal with.

‘It was then I lost my way a bit. I lost my confidence going out.’

Last month, he was added to the line up to the new Reality All-Stars show at Butlins this summer. 

LOUISA JOHNSON

Louisa Johnson was just 17 when she wont the 12th series of X Factor in 2015. Since, she’s described the experience as ‘f***** up’, and told the Sun she had severe anxiety and and blacked out from December to April 2016.

Louisa Johnson was just 17 when she wont the 12th series of X Factor in 2015.

Since, she’s described the experience as ‘f***** up’, and told the Sun she had severe anxiety and and blacked out from December to April 2016.  

‘I don’t remember anything. I just remember it not being that good, to be honest,’ she said. 

She’s failed to break into the top 10 since her debut Forever Young in 2019 (which peaked at number 9) – and her last three singles didn’t get into the top 40.

 SAM BAILEY 

Winner Sam Bailey was dropped by her record label, Syco Music, just 14 months after she won the show. Shortly after she revealed she was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy after the birth of her daughter Miley Beau.

Winner Sam Bailey was dropped by her record label, Syco Music, just 14 months after she won the show. 

Shortly after she revealed she was  diagnosed with Bell’s palsy after the birth of her daughter Miley Beau.

She explained she was suddenly hit with some terrifying symptoms of Bell’s palsy one morning, waking up unable to talk properly and suffering ear pain which soon spread to other parts of her face, leaving it paralysed – and deaf in one ear.

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