Eastenders actress, Kara Tointon, lifted the Strictly Come Dancing glitterball last night after winning the show with dance partner, Artem Chigvintsev. Having consistently received the top scores each week with the judges, the actress from Leigh-On-Sea was a deserving winner of the hit BBC1 show.
After dazzling the judges and the audience with her rumba from the previous week, Kara received an almost-perfect score of 39 out of 40 from the judges, with Craig Revell Horwood failing to give the pair a score of 10 due to 'an illegal lift'. The other judges and professional dancers failed to see an illegal lift but Mr Nasty still failed to give the couple the perfect score that they deserved.
Despite this, Kara and Artem reached the final two and waltzed their way to the glitterball trophy! The waltz was the only dance that this loved-up duo had failed to perform but managed to amaze the audience, who responded with yet another standing ovation.
Following weeks of training with one another, Kara and Artem had developed a very close relationship, with Artem announcing in a previous week that he would wait until the show was finished to ask Kara out on a date. He felt that it would be too 'complicated' for the pair to be in a relationship whilst still dancing on the show. The pair shared a loving kiss at the end of the show, with their fellow contestants and the audience responding with a cheer!
Congratulations to Kara and Artem!
Sunday 19 December 2010
Friday 17 December 2010
Essex star is the Critics Choice!
Jessie J is a local singer and songwriter and has been gradually rising to stardom! This week, the fantastic singer, whose fullname is Jessica Cornish, was awarded the Critics Choice awards at the 2011 Brit Awards.
This prize has previously been awarded to artists such as Adele and Ellie Goulding, who have both been tremendously successful after receiving the accolade. The award is given to rising artists who are tipped to have great success within the following year and into the future, so it is a great honour for Jessie J to receive the prize.
Having worked with B.O.B, Christina Aguilera and Chris Brown, this Essex girl is used to the music world and has plenty of contacts to help her to succeed within the industry. She has also worked with Justin Timberlake and he has even said that he feels she is "the best singer in the world right now".
This isn't the first success that Jessie J has had - she also wrote hit single 'Party In The USA' for American teen star Miley Cyrus. This shows that Jessie J has the writing talent to create even more hits in the future!
And awards do not end here for Jessie J! She has been nominated on the Long-List for the BBC's Sound of 2011, whereby music experts at the BBC handpick a selection of inspiring artists who have a lot of talent and a unique sound to succeed in the upcoming year. As well as this, I'm sure that this Essex girl will go on to be a star in the future, and will receive many more awards to add to her collection!
This prize has previously been awarded to artists such as Adele and Ellie Goulding, who have both been tremendously successful after receiving the accolade. The award is given to rising artists who are tipped to have great success within the following year and into the future, so it is a great honour for Jessie J to receive the prize.
Having worked with B.O.B, Christina Aguilera and Chris Brown, this Essex girl is used to the music world and has plenty of contacts to help her to succeed within the industry. She has also worked with Justin Timberlake and he has even said that he feels she is "the best singer in the world right now".
This isn't the first success that Jessie J has had - she also wrote hit single 'Party In The USA' for American teen star Miley Cyrus. This shows that Jessie J has the writing talent to create even more hits in the future!
And awards do not end here for Jessie J! She has been nominated on the Long-List for the BBC's Sound of 2011, whereby music experts at the BBC handpick a selection of inspiring artists who have a lot of talent and a unique sound to succeed in the upcoming year. As well as this, I'm sure that this Essex girl will go on to be a star in the future, and will receive many more awards to add to her collection!
Monday 13 December 2010
X Factor Final Weekend!
Matt Cardle has been crowned the winner of the X Factor 2010!
After reaching the final on Saturday, despite being ill for a fortnight, Matt sung his heart out to reach Sunday's show. His steamy performance with Rihanna amazed the nation as all of Essex watched on to see Matt's dream of performing with Rihanna come true!
Alongside One Direction and Rebecca Ferguson, Matt joined the Take That boys with a performance of Never Forget. As the phone lines were frozen, everybody in Essex sat on the edge of their seats willing Matt to reach the final two. One Direction were surpringly knocked out with Matt and Rebecca going on to sing their winner's singles.
Matt then went on to absolutely smash 'When We Collide', previously performed by Scottish rockers, 'Biffy Clyro'. There was then no surprise that our Essex boy Matt Cardle was announced as the winner of the hit show!
It has now been revealed that Matt had the highest number of votes EVERY week throughout the series, with one exception of Week One where Matt came second behind Ireland's Mary Byrne. In the final of the series, Matt had 44.61% of the vote and was the deserved winner of the X Factor!
Congrats Matt!
After reaching the final on Saturday, despite being ill for a fortnight, Matt sung his heart out to reach Sunday's show. His steamy performance with Rihanna amazed the nation as all of Essex watched on to see Matt's dream of performing with Rihanna come true!
Alongside One Direction and Rebecca Ferguson, Matt joined the Take That boys with a performance of Never Forget. As the phone lines were frozen, everybody in Essex sat on the edge of their seats willing Matt to reach the final two. One Direction were surpringly knocked out with Matt and Rebecca going on to sing their winner's singles.
Matt then went on to absolutely smash 'When We Collide', previously performed by Scottish rockers, 'Biffy Clyro'. There was then no surprise that our Essex boy Matt Cardle was announced as the winner of the hit show!
It has now been revealed that Matt had the highest number of votes EVERY week throughout the series, with one exception of Week One where Matt came second behind Ireland's Mary Byrne. In the final of the series, Matt had 44.61% of the vote and was the deserved winner of the X Factor!
Congrats Matt!
Queen of the Jungle!
Last Saturday, Stacey Solomon was crowned queen of the jungle on hit ITV1 show 'I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!'
After her cheerful, funny personality dazzled the nation, Stacey won the show like most people in the country had expected! Her fun and antics in the jungle kept us entertained for 3 weeks, so it seemed only right that our Essex girl won! Stacey fought off (somewhat easy!) competition from Shaun Ryder and Jenni Eclair in the final of the show, with Dom Joly being knocked out in the Semi-Final!
Congrats Stacey!
After her cheerful, funny personality dazzled the nation, Stacey won the show like most people in the country had expected! Her fun and antics in the jungle kept us entertained for 3 weeks, so it seemed only right that our Essex girl won! Stacey fought off (somewhat easy!) competition from Shaun Ryder and Jenni Eclair in the final of the show, with Dom Joly being knocked out in the Semi-Final!
Congrats Stacey!
Tuesday 30 November 2010
Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!
After watching the news for days and seeing the snow in other parts of the country, it was time that Essex had some snow of its own! However, we never expected the snow to be to this extent!
The county woke up to a blanket of snow this morning causing much disruption to schools and roads. On higher ground, the snow was several inches deep and many people were snowed in, or in some cases snowed out.
Over 100 schools were closed before 9am this morning, with more schools closing as the day went on. Moulsham High School opened as normal this morning but due to the snow, the grounds became unsafe and insufficient numbers of staff were able to reach the school. Students were then dismissed and were free to enjoy the snow with friends.
Local councils and emergency services in the county have done as much work as possible all day to clear major routes and pavements to make Essex accessible and safe for the public.
Councils also warned any commuters travelling by car to allow ten times their usual journey time to reach their destination. This was due to the icy conditions on the roads, as well as accidents on the motorway causing chaos.
Whilst some schools have already told students that they will be closed tomorrow, other students still wait to hear whether they will have to wake up and fight the cold and snow in the morning.
Fingers crossed for all students in Essex hoping for a day off tomorrow!
The county woke up to a blanket of snow this morning causing much disruption to schools and roads. On higher ground, the snow was several inches deep and many people were snowed in, or in some cases snowed out.
Over 100 schools were closed before 9am this morning, with more schools closing as the day went on. Moulsham High School opened as normal this morning but due to the snow, the grounds became unsafe and insufficient numbers of staff were able to reach the school. Students were then dismissed and were free to enjoy the snow with friends.
Local councils and emergency services in the county have done as much work as possible all day to clear major routes and pavements to make Essex accessible and safe for the public.
Councils also warned any commuters travelling by car to allow ten times their usual journey time to reach their destination. This was due to the icy conditions on the roads, as well as accidents on the motorway causing chaos.
Whilst some schools have already told students that they will be closed tomorrow, other students still wait to hear whether they will have to wake up and fight the cold and snow in the morning.
Fingers crossed for all students in Essex hoping for a day off tomorrow!
Jungle Stacey!
Another former X Factor contestant is on the blog this week, but this time it's third-place Stacey Solomon, also from 2009. Stacey is currently on our screens in hit ITV show 'I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here', and it looks as if she could sweep the title of Queen of the Jungle!
Stacey has been in the jungle since the start of the competition on the 14th November, and has taken part in many trials. Last night saw Stacey battle out with Olympic athlete, Linford Christie, to see which camp would win a night of luxury. Stacey, and 'Camp Sheila', were victorious, with Stacey and fellow campmate Jenni Eclair spending an evening of luxury in a seperate area of the jungle. The pair were given beds and a minibar, filled with alcohol and sweets!
Stacey has continued showing her funny, loving and heart-warming character to the nation and we can all see again why we all fell in love with her this time last year!
Come on Stacey! Do it for us Essex Girls!
Stacey has been in the jungle since the start of the competition on the 14th November, and has taken part in many trials. Last night saw Stacey battle out with Olympic athlete, Linford Christie, to see which camp would win a night of luxury. Stacey, and 'Camp Sheila', were victorious, with Stacey and fellow campmate Jenni Eclair spending an evening of luxury in a seperate area of the jungle. The pair were given beds and a minibar, filled with alcohol and sweets!
Stacey has continued showing her funny, loving and heart-warming character to the nation and we can all see again why we all fell in love with her this time last year!
Come on Stacey! Do it for us Essex Girls!
Semi-Finals for local boy Matt!
The country's most popular TV show is nearing it's end - the Semi-Final of X Factor is this weekend and the county all need to get behind Matt Cardle!
Matt has done amazingly well throughout the whole competition, being one of the three contestants in the semi-finals who have never faced the 'dreaded sing-off', out of the 5 who are now in the semis.
Matt faces competition from One Direction, Cher Lloyd, Rebecca Ferguson & Mary Byrne. However, Matt is bookies favourite to win with 8/11 odds.
Matt is the last remaining boy from Dannii's category.
Please come back to this blog during the week for more Matt Cardle & X Factor news!
Matt has done amazingly well throughout the whole competition, being one of the three contestants in the semi-finals who have never faced the 'dreaded sing-off', out of the 5 who are now in the semis.
Matt faces competition from One Direction, Cher Lloyd, Rebecca Ferguson & Mary Byrne. However, Matt is bookies favourite to win with 8/11 odds.
Matt is the last remaining boy from Dannii's category.
Please come back to this blog during the week for more Matt Cardle & X Factor news!
Chelmsford Christmas Lights!
On Sunday 28th November, thousands of fans queued down Chelmsford High Street to watch X Factor Finalist and Essex-Boy, Olly Murs, turn on the Christmas lights!
The event ran all day with many local up-and-coming acts performing in the bitterly-cold weather!
From 4:00, the Under-16s singing competition started, with UK Eurovision entry, Josh Dubovie, as one of the judges. Ellie Smit, from Moulsham High School, (and a great friend of mine), sung 'Let It Snow' and was fantastic!
Following on from this, Josh took to the stage to sing to the audience with songs such as 'Just Haven't Met You Yet', made famous by Michael Buble, and 'Cooler Than Me', a recent Top 10 hit by Mike Posner.
The acts prior to this only had to mention 'Olly' to be followed by screams erupting from the very eager audience of 'Ollyettes'! When Mr Murs finally came to grace the stage, with 'Please Don't Let Me Go' playing to the crowd, the tech-team had a slight failure as Olly had to chat to the audience whilst his microphone and track were fixed!
Olly charmed the crowd with three songs: his number one, hit debut single 'Please Don't Let Me Go', the B-Side to this single, 'This One's for the Girls', and his brand new single, 'Thinking Of Me'. All girls in the crowd who had come to their local high street for the exclusive gig were hugely pleased to hear the B-Side to Olly's debut single, where Olly sings about Essex girls and finished the song by saying 'you can't beat you Essex girls!'
Olly said he was 'delighted' and 'honoured' to be back in his hometown to be turning on the lights. He said that 'he hoped to be home again soon' and wished the crowd a huge thank you for all the support they gave, and contine to give, to him over the past year.
He also wished for the county to back current X Factor contestant, and fellow Essex boy, Matt Cardle. 'Please support Matt like you supported me', said the Essex heartthrob, just before he left the stage to the sound of screaming fans!
Thank you Olly for a great evening. Maybe we'll have Matt next year?
The event ran all day with many local up-and-coming acts performing in the bitterly-cold weather!
From 4:00, the Under-16s singing competition started, with UK Eurovision entry, Josh Dubovie, as one of the judges. Ellie Smit, from Moulsham High School, (and a great friend of mine), sung 'Let It Snow' and was fantastic!
Following on from this, Josh took to the stage to sing to the audience with songs such as 'Just Haven't Met You Yet', made famous by Michael Buble, and 'Cooler Than Me', a recent Top 10 hit by Mike Posner.
The acts prior to this only had to mention 'Olly' to be followed by screams erupting from the very eager audience of 'Ollyettes'! When Mr Murs finally came to grace the stage, with 'Please Don't Let Me Go' playing to the crowd, the tech-team had a slight failure as Olly had to chat to the audience whilst his microphone and track were fixed!
Olly charmed the crowd with three songs: his number one, hit debut single 'Please Don't Let Me Go', the B-Side to this single, 'This One's for the Girls', and his brand new single, 'Thinking Of Me'. All girls in the crowd who had come to their local high street for the exclusive gig were hugely pleased to hear the B-Side to Olly's debut single, where Olly sings about Essex girls and finished the song by saying 'you can't beat you Essex girls!'
Olly said he was 'delighted' and 'honoured' to be back in his hometown to be turning on the lights. He said that 'he hoped to be home again soon' and wished the crowd a huge thank you for all the support they gave, and contine to give, to him over the past year.
He also wished for the county to back current X Factor contestant, and fellow Essex boy, Matt Cardle. 'Please support Matt like you supported me', said the Essex heartthrob, just before he left the stage to the sound of screaming fans!
Thank you Olly for a great evening. Maybe we'll have Matt next year?
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