Whatever Happened To The Original Pop Idol Finalists?

Today marks 15 years since the original series of Pop Idol hit our screens which means 15 years since we all realised we were destined to marry a stuttering 17 year old from Bradford until Jordan had her wicked way with him and we v quickly went off the idea.

Pop Idol may only have lasted 2 series but it paved the way for the reality TV juggernaut that is The X Factor and the original finalists were fresh faced guinea pigs for Simon Cowell's money making machine but whatever happened to them we hear you wonder?

Well, wonder no more because, here at Pop Kulture, we have an encyclopedic knowledge on stuff like this and if we concentrated as hard on exams as we do on pop stars we would be at Harvard law school by now.

Will Young

The first winner of Pop Idol has been one of the very few reality TV success stories having managed to carve out a career for himself in both music and theatre. He's released four number 1 singles - including the ever fabulous - Leave Right Now, was nominated for an Olivier Award in 2012 after a star turn as Emcee in Cabaret which then embarked on a national tour and is currently participating in Strictly Come Dancing.

Gareth Gates

The first crush of a generation released a few hit singles after Pop Idol including a cover of Unchained Melody which won him Record Of The Year 2002 and a duet with The Kumars At No. 42 for Comic Relief 2003. After disappearing for a while he skated back into the public eye with an appearance on Dancing On Ice which led into a successful career in musical theatre. He's starred in shows such as Joseph (which we saw. He was in a loin cloth for most of it. It was fabulous) and Les Mis on tour and in the glittering West End. He's currently appearing in the national tour of Footloose and dating Faye Brooks who plays Kate Connor in Corrie.

Darius Campbell (formerly Danesh)

Despite having a successful career, the Scottish, once ponytail wearer, will always be remembered for that performance of Baby One More Time on Popstars. Luckily, he was able to redeem himself when Rik Waller was forced to pull out of Pop Idol in the first couple of weeks meaning Darius was allowed to step in to make up the numbers. His first single, Colourblind reached number 1 and he released a handful more before taking part in the, sadly short lived, Sunday night reality show, Popstar To Opera Star which he went on to win. He has also carved out a career for himself in musical theatre with roles in Gone With The Wind and From Here To Eternity. He's currently starring opposite Sheridan Smith in Funny Girl in the fancy Savoy Theatre.

Zoe Birkett

At only 16, Zoe finished fourth and was the last remaining female in the competition. She released one single, Treat Me Like A Lady which is still a solid gold bop tbh before finding her feet in theatre. She's starred in Thriller Live several times over and was in the original cast of Priscilla Queen Of The Desert alongside Jason Donovan. In 2014 she entered the Big Brother house and lasted a few weeks before being evicted on day 58. She's recently finished touring in The Bodyguard, where she shared the lead role of Rachel Marron with Alexandra Burke.

Hayley Evetts

Having already appeared in Popstars, and failing to reach the top 10, Hayley was slightly more successful in Pop Idol where she placed fifth. After the show, she made a bit of a name for herself as a TV presenter fronting Cruel Holiday for Sky and Popstars: The Rivals Extra alongside Dane Bowers on ITV2. She also dabbled in acting with an appearance in Corrie before playing Sandy in a national tour of Grease alongside Robbie's pal, Jonathan Wilkes as Danny. She tried her hand at music again when she auditioned for The X Factor in 2012 where she reached bootcamp but was eliminated before judges' houses.

Rosie Ribbons

Going into the finals, Rosie was tipped for glory after her audition reduced Pete Waterman to tears but the nerves clearly got the better of her during ABBA week when her failed attempt at a Mariah-esque The Winner Takes It All didn't impress and saw her finish sixth. She signed a contract with Telstar Records and released two Top 20 singles; Blink and a cover of the Jessica Simpson banger, A Little Bit. In 2007 she moved to Australia where she auditioned for Australian Idol and reached the Top 24. According to Wikipedia she's since moved back to the UK and was a featured vocalist on an EP which also featured none other than Ed Sheeran.

Laura Doherty

Irish born, Laura found herself in the bottom two so many times on Pop Idol she christened herself The Sofa Queen which was a smart move as she then secured an advertising deal with Reid Furnishings. She moved back to her hometown of Derry where she taught hip-hop dancing and married her long-term boyfriend. After some digging we found out she fronted a jazz band called The Fontelles but we can't find any info which confirms they're still together.

Aaron Bayley

 

Geordie, Aaron failed to impress on Burt Bacarach week and was the third finalist to be eliminated from the competition. He still works in music and fronts The Aaron Bayley Band which is - according to their website - the number 1 wedding band in the North East.

Jessica Garlick

Despite being the second person voted off the show (during Christmas week, no less. Where was our festive spirit?) Jessica was chosen to represent the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2003 where she reached THIRD PLACE. We haven't done any better since although Jade Ewen did come close when she came fifth in 2009. She attempted another go at a music career in 2009 but she isn't on twitter for us to see what she's up to now.

Korben

Real name, Chris Niblett was the first person to be voted off the show but also holds the honour of being the first reality show contestant to come out as gay. After the show he recorded some dance tracks which never amounted to anything but he's since retrained as a make up artist and was head of make up for Jemma Kidd. He now works as a high flyer for Esteé Lauder.


Images: ITV

Bands More Worthy of the Title The Biggest Reunion In Pop

We've been getting teased for weeks about a reunion happening in the pop world and this morning, Emma Willis finally revealed that Bros are that reunion. They're celebrating their 30th anniversary with a live show - at the O2 arena no less - on August 19th next year if you know anyone who wants to start collecting Grolsch bottle tops for their shoes.

We're not overly enthusiastic about the news because, well, it's hardly a reunion is it? They're twins. A family get-together is a reunion for Bros. So, here's our list of bands we'd have preferred to have held a press conference today.

Girls Aloud

The world is crying out for Cheryl & Nadine to bury the hatchet and announce an album and tour with the rest of the Girls. They can stand at opposite ends of the stage if need be.

OG Sugababes

We were promised an album from MKS a good few years ago which never appeared so we'd like to hear that please. They absolutely deserve the title of Sugababes back tho. We love Heidi but Amelle & Jade Ewen* are not, and never will be, true 'Babes.

*No shade. She's an excellent Princess Jasmine in Aladdin in the glittering West End.

Westlife

With Brian McFadden because he was good for a laugh like when he tried to fight So Solid Crew at the BRITs

Mis-Teeq

Alesha seems very comfortable with her ITV contract having sat on the BGT judging panel for the last few years and helping Louis pick his groups at judges houses on this year's X Factor but Sabrina and Su-Elise are but a distant memory to pop fans. It's time to educate the new generation on the true meaning of rap and UK garage.

ABBA

The true holders of the Biggest Reunion In Pop title and no one should be allowed to use it until ABBA come back and bless us with the O2 residency we deserve.

Spice Girls

GEM are a thing now and we're very excited about it but nothing, and we mean nothing will rival the feeling of utter joy when we spotted all 5 Spice Girls getting out their taxis at the Olympics back in 2012. Come on Posh & Sporty, take one for the team and join the gang.

Scooch

Greatest UK Eurovision entry in history.

Literally any other pop band but Bros.  

6 Celebrities We Miss Being In The Public Eye

We grew up in the 00s when celeb culture really came into its own. Reality TV was at an all time high, The X Factor peaked and being a WAG was a genuine ambition second only to It girl a la Paris Hilton or Tara Palmer Tompkinson depending on how low your standards were and how many footballers you'd slept with. It's safe to say we grew up obsessed with 'celebrity' but it's a fleeting thing this business we call show so there's a fair few celebs we don't really see anymore. And it's about time they found their way back to the limelight.

Mutya Buena 

Getty Images

Her legacy lives on in the shape of Whitney Dean in Eastenders who hasn't been told it's no longer 2006 but Mutya hasn't been active in celeb circles for a long time. The Sugababe left the band in 2005 to be replaced by Amelle Berrabah to questionable success (having said that, About You Now is still a solid gold banger and reduced us to tears when Steph sang it at Max's funeral in Hollyoaks). She had a stint in the Celeb Big Brother house in 2009 but walked. She then, in 2012, reunited with fellow OG Sugababes and they released one single, Flatline under the cleverly titled Mutya Keisha Siobhan and made promises of an album which never appeared. In 2014 she was declared bankrupt so we think it's about time she came back and gave us the MKS album we deserve.

Natasha Bedingfield 

Epic Records

Daniel's sister followed him into the world of pop stardom and - for a brief time - was one of the biggest stars in the country. Her debut single, Single was about being a strong, independent woman who don't need no man which was perfectly timed to be released just as a whole generation of girls were slowly realising they probably wouldn't marry Gareth Gates and tbh they weren't that bothered anymore since the whole Jordan story had broke. Her second single These Words was the bop of the summer in 2004 and scored Natasha her first number 1 single but Unwritten was everyone's fave when it was used as the theme song for The Hills. She teamed up with her brother for an ill advised duet at the 2005 Brit awards before swanning off to America where she sang about wanting to have your babies and she's been based there ever since. We feel a Unwritten: The Homecoming tour is long overdue.

Trisha 

NBC

Before Jeremy Kyle started shouting at people to "put something on the end of it" we had Trisha Goddard trying her damnedest to help poor souls sort of their personal lives. She used to ask the audience for their input and opinions which was a fabulous idea which Jezza hasn't taken on board yet. She left ITV in 2004 and went to Channel 5 where she basically hosted the same show with a different set which we vaguely remember seeing advertised but it clearly wasn't as hard hitting as its ITV predecessor. She received treatment for breast cancer in 2008 while still presenting her Channel 5 show and looked to none other than Queen Kylie Minogue for inspiration and motivation. She's now based in the US where she hosts her own show which she describes on Twitter as "straight talk, warm heart". Bring that back home, Trisha.

Katy Hill

ITV

There was nothing Katy Hill couldn't do with a yogurt pot and some sticky back plastic in the 90s. Undoubtedly, one of Blue Peter's most popular presenters, Katy Hill left CBBC's flagship show in 2000 leaving us, and we're sure several others, completely devastated. The grief we felt was akin to when Tiffany died in Eastenders. After Blue Peter, she went on to host Live & Kicking, Top Of The Pops, Holiday and several radio shows. You could be forgiven for thinking that Katy Hill hasn't gone completely off the radar as she does pop up on our screens advertising toothpaste every so often and is still on Heart Radio alongside fellow Blue Peter presenter, Stuart Miles but we miss full-time-TV-presenter Katy. She also runs her own blog katyhillsblog.com where she writes about parenting, beauty and travel.

Lisa Scott Lee

CelebsNow

Lisa was everyone's favourite member of Steps despite the fact she only ever got to sing on album tracks that never got released or would get a small, spoken word section, on a single if lucky. When Steps split up she acted as manager for her brothers' band, 3SL before marrying backing dancer and Kym's Hear'Say replacement, Johnny Shentall in 2004. They, alongside other Scott-Lee family members and her management, took part in the MTV series Totally Scott-Lee in which a camera crew followed Lisa in her quest to achieve a Top 10 hit single or quit the music industry. The chosen single, Electric, reached number 13. Unlucky for some (lol). Steps reunited in 2011 to the utter joy of Pop Kulture and even released a fragrance called Guilty Pleasure which came in a dosco ball style bottle. Amazing. She and her husband now live in Dubai where they run the Dubai Performing Arts Academy which we think would make a far more interesting reality show if MTV want to reunite with the Scott Lee/Shentalls.

Nicki Chapman

nickichapman.com

To be fair to Nicki, she hasn't gone completely MIA. She still pops up regularly on the BBC presenting shows like Escape To The Country and standing in for Radio 2 presenters but lest we forget Nicki's true talent lies in the pop music industry. She originally worked in PR and represented every popstar from David Bowie to Amy Winehouse to the Spice Girls before being called upon by Simon Fuller to join the judging panel on both predecessors to the The X Factor; Popstars (which produced Hear'Say) and Pop Idol which gave us Will Young and blessed us with Michelle McManus. The fact she hasn't been given her own Nicki's Knowledge slot on The Xtra Factor is downright rude in our opinion and this should be rectified immediately.

Pop Kulture's Very Important Rundown Of The Strictly Celebs

It is very nearly time for a new batch of celebs to take to the floor in a bid to win the coveted glitter ball trophy we have all tried to make ourselves at home with a smashed up mirror and papier mache. No? Just us? OK.

The class of Strictly 2016 have had their first spray tan, been pulled and pushed into some very tight-fitting Lycra and, most likely, cried a little bit when they found out just how hard they will need to train.

Before they sashay into the arms of their professional dance partners in Saturday's launch show let us fill you in on this year's movers and shakers and provide you with our expert* opinion.


*We've been watching the show for bloody years and will also take this opportunity to throw our hat into the Head Judge ring for when Len departs.

Ed Balls

Famous For: being the former Shadow Chancellor, unintentional founder of Ed Balls Day on Twitter.
Will He Be Any Good Tho? We hope so. We hope he hasn't been put in as the comic relief but he's a bit of an underdog given how well MPs have previously done in the competition. As long as he isn't dragged around the floor by Anton DuBeke at any point.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Waltz

Greg Rutherford 

Famous For: Olympic long jumper who won gold in London and bronze in Rio, being ginger
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
We have high hopes for Greg's dancing (we also wish he was a high jumper because that would have been an excellent pun). Will probably employ the rip-open-shirt manoeuvre and will almost certainly have a dance centred around athletics/Olympics/gold medals at some point.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Quickstep

Daisy Lowe 

Famous For: enjoying pleather, also a model, the daughter of Pearl Lowe & Gavin Rossdale (and ex-stepdaughter of Gwen Stefani)
Will She Be Any Good Tho?
Despite having no knowledge of Daisy's dancing ability we expect her to score quite high in the competition. May unleash a catsuit. Will most definitely have the best Halloween costume.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Paso Doble

Louise Redknapp 

Famous For: 90s pop star who was in Eternal before going solo, sang about being Naked, is married to Jamie Redknapp, once tried to slim down to size zero for an ITV documentary and we've been worried about her wellbeing ever since
Will She Be Any Good Tho?
She is already one of our faves and she hasn't so much as done a heel lead yet. "Previous experience" may be used against her but Eternal were no Steps as far as dance routines go. Will hopefully dance to one of her own songs.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Waltz

Melvin Odoom 

Famous For: having the most fabulous name in showbiz, presenting last year's Xtra Factor, on the radio every morning with Rickie Haywood Williams
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
Probably, yes. We have high hopes for his Latin abilities however he's rather titchy and will need a small professional dancer to look swarthy in hold for ballroom.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Samba

Judge Rinder

Famous For: being the British Judge Judy, was Benedict Cumberbatch's best man, Benedict also officiated the Judge (real name Robert) and partner Seth's wedding in 2013.
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
The Judge was one of the first celebs to be rumoured for this year's
competition so we're going to say yes. Will most definitely use a judge's robe as a cape in the paso and use a gavel at some point. May employ the use of video-message-from-Cumberbatch if things go tits up.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Foxtrot

Will Young 

Famous For: beating Gareth Gates in the final of Pop Idol, singing Leave Right Now and other songs you know but that aren't as good as LRN.
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
Without a shadow of a doubt Will will go all the way to, at least, the quarter finals. He can move and act but has the mum vote if all goes to shit. Like Louise will likely have "previous experience" thrown at him. Again, we're hopeful he dances to one of his own songs.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Charleston

Laura Whitmore 

Famous For: Irish TV presenter, was host of ITV2's I'm A Celeb spin off until this year, usually does after shows and red carpets for BRITs/BAFTAs etc
Will She Be Any Good Tho? 
We're going to say yes. Was rumoured to be taking part as soon as she announced she wouldn't be returning to Australia so has probably wanted to do the show for ages and these people usually end up being good. Probably won't suffer the same curse as Daniel O'Donnell last year of Ireland not being able to vote.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Jive

Anastasia 

Famous For: wearing sunglasses, having a huge voice, sang many a 00s bop
Will She Be Any Good Tho?
Again, she was rumoured very early on so we hope she is fab-u-lous but feel she may struggle with some of the Latin numbers and will need to rely on personality. Will most likely wear sunglasses for at least one dance.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: American Smooth

Lesley Joseph 

Famous For: being Dorian in Birds of a Feather and generally fabulous
Will She Be Any Good Tho?
Even if she isn't (which we very much hope she will be) she will definitely inject a lot of fun into her numbers. Most likely to get Anton this year for the lolz unless they follow last year and give him a legit possible winner.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Foxtrot

Ore Oduba 

Famous For: presenting this year's Olympics for BBC Four, see also; Newsround, The One Show, various CBBC things, became Pop Kulture hero when he quoted Richard Blackwood's Mama Who Da Man whilst presenting backstage after the live Eastenders last year
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
He certainly has potential but we don't know enough about him to do a proper Craig Revel Horwood on him. We are hopeful he'll get to dance to Richard Blackwood's hit, however.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: We'll say Jive because he seems fun and fast.

Claudia Fragapane 

Famous For: Olympic gymnast, has just competed in Rio
Will She Be Any Good Tho? 
She ticks all the boxes of a worthy winner as she's young, fit, v flexible and obvs follows in the footsteps of fellow gymnast, Louis Smith who won the show in 2012. Perhaps not as well known as some of the other celebs but will almost certainly impress. Will most definitely dance in a leotard and/or incorporate a somersault/cartwheel/insert own tumble very early on.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Jive 

Danny Mac 

Famous For: Appearing in Hollyoaks, having half a surname
Will He Be Any Good Tho?
Will probably be decent but has a big fan base who will carry him through to at least the halfway stage. Another one who will employ the rip-off-the-shirt technique but earlier than Greg.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Salsa

Naga Munchetty 

Famous For: being on the BBC Breakfast sofa, carrying off a pixie cut
Will She Be Any Good Tho?
She's following in the footsteps of several other BBC Breakfast presenters who have cha cha'd their way across the floor to varying degrees of success. Will most likely be somewhere between Susanna Reid and Bill Turnbull but we're unsure if she has the likability of Carol Kirkwood to stay in the competition a long time.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: American Smooth

Tameka Empson 

Famous For: playing the fabulous Kim in Eastenders
Will She Be Any Good Tho? 
We can't help but feel the Eastenders team have been teasing us for ages since Kim set up her salsa class. She can definitely move and will bring a lot of fun to the floor. Will probably excel at Latin. Is no stranger to fabulous costumes playing Kim. Will definitely involve co-stars in rehearsals.
Best Dance Will Probably Be: Samba

All photos: BBC

Happy National Snake Day: #KimExposedTaylorParty

RIGHT OK.

We assume by now you've seen the whole Kim K exposing Taylor thing? If you haven't let us fill you in real quick.

On Sunday night Kim posted Snapchats of a phone conversation between Kanye and Taylor proving that Kanye did indeed tell Taylor about Famous and that she approved what he had written despite Taylor's insistence to the media for the longest time that this was not the case. Taylor then tried to cover her ass by Instagramming a statement which was obvs written and saved months ago just in case aforementioned evidence was ever leaked before releasing her squad into the wild to tweet there's "more important things in the world"

 Tl;dr Taylor Swift has been exposed and Twitter has blown up with the scandal.

What's annoyed us is Taylor playing the victim and going all "omg you can't write songs about people it's not nice guys!" when her entire discography is all about other people who we're certain she didn't call up during the recording process to ask if they were OK with it.

What's annoyed us even more are all the Taylor stans - and probably Piers Morgan - trying to drag Kim with the pathetic "well, Taylor is a successful woman who doesn't rely on her naked body" faux feminism argument. Yes, Kim chooses to post naked selfies but what has that - and her body in general - got to do with this argument in particular? Do you think Taylor has more morals because she chooses to cover herself up? Does it make her less of a role model than Kim? No. Taylor is hugely successful and yes, is a great songwriter, but she misled the public and is now trying to 'exclude herself from the narrative'. And there's the tiny detail that Victoria Secret models are part of her squad ie women who rely on their bodies for money *thinking face emoji*

Basically, people are over the moon that Taylor has finally been exposed and her crown may have finally toppled. Of course, in true Kim K-W style, this all happened on National Snake Day which is so fitting we are frozen in the shade of it all.

All images: Giphy

The Fall Of Taylor Swift Through Pop Kulture's Eyes

For what seemed like the longest time, T.Swift was the It girl of country/pop crossover with her jumper & skirt combos teamed with brogues, cat loving instagram feed and, let's face it, terrific songs (1989 is still a firm favourite in PK's iTunes library) but things have started to sour in the World of TayTay at quite a rapid pace.

Let's discuss how it all went wrong.

What The Spice Girls Taught Pop Kulture

It's been - terrifyingly - a whole 20 years since The Spice Girls first burst onto our screens and into our ears chanting 'zig a zig ah' and trashing a very swanky party at St Pancras Hotel. They shaped our ideas of girl power and taught us many a thing including teaming black pvc with blue gloves a la Baby in the Say You'll Be There video will always be fashionable.

To celebrate the power of Spice, here's some of our favourite life lessons the girls taught us.

How To Drive A Bus

Especially over Tower Bridge. Handy when you've just helped deliver a friend's baby and need to get to a gig whilst in heels.

How To Advertise Without Being Too Obvs

One of us had a tantrum in the middle of Asda because our mum wouldn't buy us 'the Spice Girl drink'. This was only a few weeks ago.

How To Wake Someone Up From A Coma

Why did VB go into fashion when she clearly found her calling back in 1997?

The Proper Way To Ride A Taxi

While dancing on top, obvs.

To Always Practice Safe Sex

Put it on, put it on, boys.

How MailOnline Journalism Works

We wish we could tell Baby Spice it gets better.

The Proper Way To Accept Awards

Our main aim in life is to be Geri at the 1997 Brit Awards.

How To Pass The Time

Always handy for long car rides or whilst waiting on a friend to deliver her baby.

To Be Careful When Going Boating

Maybe pack some waterproofs.

And, of course, Girl Power

*peace sign emoji*

All images: GIPHY