LAURA White is many people’s idea of this year’s X Factor winner.
I chatted to Laura yesterday – some 24 hours after she broke down in tears at a press conference.
Happily, Laura, 21, from Atherton is now feeling a lot better and will be singing for someone very special on Saturday night.
You can read the online version of today’s MEN Pg 3 story here.
Due to the usual space restrictions, parts of the interview couldn’t be used.
Among several others things, Laura said she was pleased with the song choice for the first live ITV1 show.
“I’m very happy with the song that I’ve been given this week.
“Hopefully it will go down well.

DID you see the final part of Place Of Execution on ITV1 last night?
If you’ve recorded it to watch later, read no further…
I asked Greg Wise about the dramatic hanging scene involving his character Philip Hawkin.
But I didn’t use his quotes in my coverage of the drama as they would have given away the fact that Hawkin was executed in the concluding episode.
Wrongly executed, as it turns out – although some may feel justice was done.
Executive producer Sandra Jobling admitted that the hanging scene was her favourite moment.
“I know it sounds terrible but it was the best bit,” she said.
“Filming that scene made the hairs at the back of my neck go up.”

SO now you know.
The final 12 in The X Factor 2008 include Manchester’s Scott Bruton, Bolton’s Laura White and Diana Vickers from Blackburn.
I interviewed Scott last week about his emotional rollercoaster ride to the live studio finals.
There’s a feature on Pg 9 of tomorrow’s MEN – I’ll post a link here when it goes online.
Update – the feature with pic gallery is here.
Scott told me about the moments he broke down while filming the Judges’ Houses stage in Barbados.
Including those sobs of relief when mentor Simon Cowell told him he was through,
“But I’m a pretty hard lad, so I don’t cry much,” he maintained.
“I thought I might have tried to over-sing my two songs in an effort to try and impress.
“But Simon must have liked them, otherwise he wouldn’t have put me through.”
He also spoke about his link with 2005 winner Shayne Ward.

THE heat was on for Manchester X Factor hopeful Scott Bruton when he jetted out to Barbados to face his moment of truth.
Former Pontin’s bluecoat Scott, 19, gave up on everything, including his job, to seek glory in the TV talent search.
But viewers will see him left sweating in two ITV1 programmes tonight and tomorrow as judge Simon Cowell makes potentially life-changing decisions.
Simon’s job as mentor of the Boys aged 14 – 24 category was to choose three acts from six to go forward to the live studio finals.
“I adored being a bluecoat but leaving that for X Factor was a chance I had to take. Just being here makes me think I can do this,” says Scott.
But after his performance of George Michael’s I Can’t Make You Love Me, the teenager believes he’s blown his chances and will be heading back to Manchester with bad news and no job to go back to.
Bolton student Laura White, 20, learns her fate at the hands of judge Cheryl Cole, who has taken charge of the 14 – 24 Girls.

“I’d like you to meet my dad. I think you’re going to like him…”
I spoke to Craig Cash yesterday about his new BBC1 drama Sunshine and the return of The Royle Family.
That opening line of Sunshine comes with a twist.
And what follows is top class telly.
Written by Craig and Phil Mealey, the three-part drama stars Steve Coogan as fish and chip fryer turned binman Bing Crosby.
Dominic Senior is terrific as his innocent little boy Joe with Bernard Hill as Bing’s marvellous storytelling dad George.
The online version of today’s MEN feature interview with Craig is here.
As Craig explains, Sunshine is a drama sprinkled with comedy – with some dark moments surrounding gambling addict Bing.

THEY’VE hardly had a day off in six months.
Now the big moment is drawing near for the stars of major new ITV1 musical drama Britannia High.
The six young talents who lead the show were introduced at a London press launch this week.
They play students on a two-year course at a performing arts school.
You can read more about the series – on screen next month – in the online version of today’s MEN TV feature here.
ITV’s Head of Entertainment Paul Jackson spent 20 minutes explaining the background to the show and then chatting to the six leads.
We watched some of the teaser trailers soon to appear on ITV1 and already online – you can check out one at the bottom of this blog.
Followed by a screening of episode one and a press conference with co-creators Arlene Phillips and David Ian, along with director Brian Grant and producer Gareth Philips.

SO there we were in a Soho cinema watching the first episode in the new series of Heroes.
You want spoilers?
Well, they’re all over the web by now, following last night’s screening of episodes one and two in America.
Check out this morning’s blog here for more.
I’ll just confine myself to saying that Heroes is back on top form.
And that there are things that Sylar does that are best not seen on a very big screen at ten in the morning.
But then you knew that already, didn’t you?

JUST off to an early morning screening of the first episode of Heroes series three.
It’s billed as “the exclusive UK premiere” of the BBC2 show.
Episodes one and two were shown on American TV last night.
So, of course, I couldn’t resist seeking out some early reviews.
I’ve listed just a few below – but be warned, they contain serious spoilers.
I also thought you might like to see some of the new series pics, released today.
Heroes returns to BBC2 at 9pm on Wednesday October 1.
The new 13-part series begins moments after Nathan’s shooting.
We get to find out the “shocking identity” of his assassin.
And I have to admit, having peeked into the future, I was, indeed, shocked.

KEEP young and beautiful…if you want to be loved.
There’s something very sad at the heart of Leslie Ash’s TV documentary tomorrow night.
She tells the story of how her lip fill went disastrously wrong and investigates the cosmetic beauty and plastic surgery industry.
Leslie explains the pressure she felt to keep young and beautiful.
All the more pressing, it appears, if you are a female actress renowned for their looks.
As the years slip by and those looks begin to fade, beauty can turn into a curse.
Never having been troubled by good looks, perhaps I’m not best placed to judge.
But I still find it astonishing that after all she has been through, Leslie does not rule out further work on her face.