Famous History Graduates: Ashley John-Baptiste

It has been revealed that recent X-Factor contestant Ashley John-Baptiste recently completed a History degree. You can read more about his impressive story here. Born in South London, he was taken into care at the age of 4 and found it difficult to settle into school. Eventually, however, after being given a "final chance" by his head teacher when on the verge of exclusion from secondary, he focused on his work and, with the support of his MP, got a place at Cambridge (Fitzwilliam College) to study History where he got a 2:1. Are there any others in the music industry with similar qualifications?

Democracy and the X Factor

Apparently 20 million people watched Matt Cardle win the X Factor last night, with the 27 year old decorator beating Rebecca Ferguson and One Direction into 2nd and 3rd place. The result was probably not the one Cowell wanted, as he had made his support for One Direction quite clear. Is this then an example of the public's bloody-mindedness - particularly after the many allegations of poll manipulation this season? The inexplicably long tenure of Wagner (and Anne Widdecombe over on Strictly) presumably has something to do with this. Can any longer political trends be drawn? What lessons should Cameron, Clegg and Milliband be learning from this?

PS: Here is the Guardian's review of the final programme (described as a 2 hour chasm for the slow opening of an envelope...)

PPS: Here are some more detailed stats (and a graph!) on the X Factor voting week by week, if you're interested.

Does the AV System have the X Factor?

Here's a handy Q&A from the BBC on the Alternative Vote system, as proposed by Gordon Brown this week. They then follow this up with an interesting comparison between the system and the models used by reality shows such as the X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing, concluding that the closest reflection of these in the political world are the French Presidential elections. Do you think the public would warm to the system if it were presented this way, or would it need the political version of Simon Cowell or Len Goodman to supplement it?

Political X Factor?

Simon Cowell has been proposing a new programme which allows the public to debate and vote on important political issues, "in the style of the X Factor".

Is this workable? Watchable? Please let us know.

PS: Here is Cowell being interviewed on Newsnight discussing his ideas (plus his views on the war in Afghanistan and whether he would make "X Factor North Korea".

PPS: Here's The Guardian's view, comparing Cowell's ideas to the politics of Silvio Berlusconi.