The X Factor finalists revealed

6 October 2008 10:20am

It was tears of joy and sadness last night for The X Factor hopefuls, after the show's finalists were announced.

Singing their way into the final were Eoghan Quigg, Austin Drage and Scott Bruton from Simon Cowell's house. He and Sinitta faced a tough decision when it came to the male soloists, but judging on the boys' performances they picked these lucky three.

Cheryl Cole, judging the female soloists, gave the golden ticket to Alexandra Burke, Laura White and Diana Vickers. It was an emotional decision for Cheryl, who had to tell contestant Amy Connelly, with whom she had shared many tearful hugs, that she hadn't made it.

Meanwhile, in Louis Walsh's house, boyband Priority failed to impress after telling judges they had had no time to rehearse - and were promptly told to hit the road. Boy band JLS gave a knockout performance putting them on the road to the final.

North East girl band Desire were beaten by their immediate rivals Bad Lashes, while fellow group Girl Band also made it into the final.

In the Over 25 category, Dannii Minogue put through Daniel Evans, Ruth Lorenzo and Rachel Hylton - but she warned Rachel to stay calm in the heady waters.

"We have to work together as a team now. I think she (Rachel Hylton) is going to realise that it's a lot tougher than she thought it was going to be," said Dannii.

© The Press Association