Top Of The Pops is returning to TV screens for its annual Christmas Day appearance with a studio line-up exclusively comprising UK artists.
Although the show was axed after more than 42 years as a weekly fixture in July 2006, it has continued to have a presence on the BBC One December 25 schedules ever since and this year is no exception with the programme due to go out that day between 2 and 3pm.
Being recorded this Monday (December 12) at BBC Television Centre in London, the hour-long programme will include among its performers Example, Pixie Lott, Rizzle Kicks, Ed Sheeran, The Wanted and Will Young. Professor Green featuring Emeli Sande, Olly Murs, Noah & The Whale, The Vaccines and whoever wins The X Factor final on Sunday will also feature. The way the calendar falls this year with December 25 on a Sunday means the Official Charts Company’s Christmas chart will come out on Christmas Day itself and Top Of The Pops is due to unveil who is number one on the countdown just before the Queen’s Christmas Message is screened.
The programme will be hosted by Fearne Cotton and Radio 1 Top 40 host Reggie Yeates who said: “Hosting the yearly specials of Top Of The Pops with Fearne Cotton is one of the highlights of my year; it’s always such a thrill to present such a loved show.” Cotton added: “I’m so happy Top of the Pops is back for another Christmas special. It’s a wonderful tradition that I’m so proud to be part of. Great bands, live music and a sprinkling of fake snow thrown in to the mix! It’ll be lovely teaming up with my old mate Reggie Yates again, too. See you Christmas Day.”
In addition to the Christmas Day special, BBC Two will screen what is being billed as an affectionate tribute to the first ever Top Of The Pops host Sir Jimmy Savile who died in October just two days before what would have been his 85th birthday. Sir Jimmy Savile at the BBC: How About That Then? will include archive material from the legendary music show and will go out on what was its traditional airtime of 7pm on a Thursday on December 28.
The current queen of pop made a return to the Jingle Bell Ball in London and was back to her old tricks.
Rihanna unveiled a new blonde hairstyle which looked like it may have been a wig as she closed day one of the festive concert yesterday.
The We Found Love singer performed a set full of hits at the O2 Arena and strutted around the stage scantily dressed.
Put your hands up: Rihanna closes the Jingle Bell Ball with show of her body
Riri wore a pair of extra tiny black shorts with fishnet tights and a houndstooth wrap hanging from her waist.
She managed to stay on her feet despite rocking an extremely high pair of black ankle boots.
The 23-year-old flashed her midriff as she gyrated across the stage and entertained the audience.
Blonde ambition: Rihanna had a blonde hair style for the show
No ladders: Riri displays her long legs in a pair of fishnet tights
Talking that talk: The Bajan singer gets down with two male dancers
Flanked by some denim clad dancers the Bajan performed tracks from her latest album Talk That Talk as well as others including What's My Name? and Umbrella.
The host for the event was radio presenter Lisa Snowdon.
The model wore an orange dress that also had a cape attached to it.
She held the whole day together and introduced all of the acts before they took to the stage.
Brightening things up: Lisa Snowdon hosted the event
The opening day began with The Xtra Factor host Olly Murs performing Dance With Me Tonight.
Wearing a checked shirt and a trilby he also sang Heart Skips A Beat and was then joined on the track by special surprise guests Rizzle Kicks.
Who's the man? Olly Murs rushed off after his set to film the Xtra Factor
The duo then stayed on stage and gave a rendition of their own hit song, Down With The Trumpets.
Olly, who had to rush off to present Xtra Factor, had tweeted about his busy schedule earlier in the day and said: 'Arrived back in London!! HUGE Day ahead!! Am doing @CapitalOfficial Jingle Bell Ball tonight!! Opening show then back for XTRA Factor!! (sic).'
American singer Jason Derulo was next up and he performed a selection of his best selling singles in a glittery silver jacket.
Making moves: Jason Derulo danced in a silver jacket
Pixie Lott followed shortly after and opened with Boys And Girls which had the crowd singing along through out.
The blonde 20-year-old wore a short black dress with ankle boots.
She told the crowd that it felt 'great' to be back at Jingle Bell Ball.
Another blonde: Pixie Lott performs on stage during the Capital FM Jingle Bell Ball
The multi-talented Labrinth gave perhaps the most rousing set of the evening.
Labrinth surprised the crowd when he sang his own version of Chris Brown's Beautiful People and got a great reaction from them.
He also performed his debut single Let The Sunshine as well as Pass Out and an acoustic version of Frisky.
Mr talented: Labrinth gave the crowd a lift with his set
When he ended his set with Earthquake the arena erupted and the audience went crazy for his number two hit.
DJ and producer Calvin Harris performed a turntable based set ahead of boy band The Wanted.
The Warzone singers made an unconventional entrance on to the stage by walking through the mostly female crowd.
Warzone: The female fans went crazy for the boy band
Some lucky fans managed to get a kiss of the boys as Jay, Tom, Max, Siva and Nathan were pulled and grabbed in all directions.
The Jungle Bell Ball continues tomorrow with One Direction, Wretch 32 and JLS.
Lovely boys: The Wanted made their way through the crowd to the stage
Gary Barlow was the only judge who boasted that he did not feel nervous ahead of tonight's results on the X Factor.
It seems the Take That judge may have overestimated the female fan base for his contestant Frankie Cocozza, who ended up in the bottom two alongside Nu Vibe.
The teen's survival performance was enough to keep him in the competition though, as only Nu Vibe's mentor Tulisa chose to save the group.
Gone: Tulisa's group Nu Vibe were voted out of the competition on tonight's X Factor results show
Shock near exit: Nu Vibe went up against assumed favourite Frankie Cocozza singing for survival
Nu Vibe performed a slowed-down, almost unrecognisable rendition of Cheryl Cole's Promise This.
Tulisa shed tears as she watched her group perform, telling the audience that she was so sad to see the group in this position as she had so much faith in them.
The group, who were thrown together during boot camp after auditioning as solo artists, were graceful in defeat, thanking the judges for the opportunity.
During their chat on the Xtra Factor later, the band nominated Misha B and The Risk as their favourites of the finalists, and Craig as the one to win.
Singing for survival: nu Vibe performed a slowed-down rendition of Cheryl Cole's Promise This
Tears: Tulisa couldn't hide her emotion as the group performed for the last time
The group tweeted after the show: 'Thank you for everything. We've had such a great experience. Sorry we can't perform to you on the X factor again but this is not the last of Nu Vibe.'
Earlier Gary Barlow was shocked when his star contestant Frankie was announced as one of the bottom two acts.
'I can't believe I'm saying this,' Gary said. 'Frankie Cocozza singing for survival,' before Frankie performed I Can't Do This By Myself.
Throughout his song the 18-year-old clearly kept the girls in the audience happy, blowing kisses to his fan base.
Not good enough: The 18-year-old admitted after last night's show that he feared his performance wasn't good enough
Frankie admitted that after last night's performance he felt deserved to go home on tonight's show.
He even tweeted shortly ahead of the show tonight: 'Extremely nervous. If I don't get through I have had an amazing experience.'
But when it came to the judges for the vote, it was split three to one in favour of Frankie.
Gary said: 'Wow. I can't believe I'm looking at Frankie stood on that stage tonight, I really can't. This is simple for me, the act I'm sending home is Nu Vibe.'
Emotional: Tulisa was in tears as her act was sent home, and said she couldn't understand why it had happened
Kelly deliberated over her answer, which she said was 'so hard,' before sending home Nu Vibe.
A clearly emotional Tulisa said: 'I think it's pretty obvious. It's a shame, but I'm sending Frankie home.'
Louis was the last to vote. 'It's tough,' he said. 'Neither act had a really good night last night. I'm saving the act who has the most potential... I'm sending home Nu Vibe.'
Tulisa was in tears when she joined her group onstage, telling Dermot that she still believes in them and was confused as to why they had been axed. 'Keep going guys,' she urged.
Style wars: Kelly chose a dramatic black gown with a plunging neckline, while Tulisa opted for a short, flirty prom-style frock with a very bust neckline
Glam factor: Viewers were quick to note the female judges' cleavage
The results show kicked off tonight with the finalists first group performance, to Hello by Martin Solveig, which had even the judges dancing in their seats, followed by a standing ovation.
Kelly wore a floor-length black gown with a plunging front that showed off plenty of cleavage,
A sheer body stocking covered her décolletage and torso.
The Destiny's Child star wore her hair in tumbling curls with dramatic dangling earrings and bangles.
Tulisa chose a flirty cream prom-style dress which had Twitter users all commenting on her substantial cleavage.
Upbeat: The finalists did there first group performance to Hello by Martin Solveig
She wore her hair in a bun to the side of her head and large stud earrings.
The Risk were the first group to be sent through to next week, followed closely by Janet, Craig and Johnny.
Gary certainly looked uncomfortable as he was left with two contestants remaining in the final three, before a relieved Marcus was put through.
Nu Vibe were the first to take the stage last night, performing U2's hit With or Without You.
Excited: johnny, who received a tweet from Kylie Minogue after his performance last night, was an early name to be called
Celebration: Girl band Rhythmix are so far successfully beating the 'curse of the girl bands' and are through to week three
Surprise: Sophie looked like she couldn't believe it when her name was called, after voicing her concerns that fans didn't know her yet
SHOW LOSES TWO MILLION VIEWERS
By BEN TODD Saturday night’s programme was watched by an average of 10.1million people, compared with 12million in the corresponding episode of the previous series. The ratings slump has coincided with a revival in the fortunes of its BBC1 rival, Strictly Come Dancing. The long-running dance contest – which averaged 9.1million viewers – beat the X Factor for all but five minutes of the half-hour period when the two programmes overlapped. It also had a larger audience share. The X Factor numbers are a huge blow to the programme’s executive producer Simon Cowell, 52, who left the British judging panel in order to launch the series in America.
Both Louis and Gary commented last night that they were disappointed in the group's performance.
Louis told the boys that he loved their boy band image but added: 'There's something missing, there's no vibe.'
To which Gary agreed saying: 'I'm sorry guys but no vibe for me. At this stage in the competition I would expect to hear vocals a lot tighter than this.'
Kelly disagreed with the male judges by using her favourite phrase: 'I didn't know what to expect but I'm so happy you guys decided to put it down!'
But that didn't stop her choosing to send them home tonight.
Frankie also received some less than stellar remarks, with Louis telling him he'd 'lost his swagger.'
Last night's episode of the X Factor pulled in two million less viewers than the same week in 2010, it was reported today.
Acoustic: Katy Perry performed her new single, ballad The One That Got Away
Boy band: The Wanted performed their new single Lightning
She's already grabbed attention for her forthcoming single What Do You Take Me For with a saucy teaser trailer, but it seems Pixie Lott has more promotional tricks up her sleeve
The star showed up at Wembley Arena for the Girl Guide UK Big Gig sporting a sexy pair of kitten ears.
The headwear completed the 20-year-old's saucy ensemble of a hip-skimming babydoll dress.
Scroll down to see Pixie's saucy new teaser trailer...
Saucy: Pixie Lott added a touch of fun to her Felder Felder dress with some kitten ears when she performed at the Girl Guide Big Gig at Wembley Arena today
Miaow: Is the 20-year-old getting into the Halloween mood already?
The star showed off her toned legs with the short skirt, a light silver necklace being her only other accessory.
She was clearly in a feline mood, tweeting just before the gig: 'Clyde1 yesterday was amazing! wowowowop! bring it on catties. About to go on for the girlguiding big gig yeeeeeeees xoxo'
Pixie Lott has recently released a teaser trailer for her new single 'What Do You Take Me For', featuring rapper Pusha T.
Flaunting it: The star showed off her toned legs
Keeping it clean: The Girl Guide Big Gig is for girl guides aged 10 and ove
Making her presence felt: Pixie has just released her second single from her forthcoming album Young Foolish Happy
The track launched earlier this week, and is the second release from her forthcoming album Young Foolish Happy.
She sports several raunchy looks in the trailer, all of which make her slender pins the main focal point.
Gyrating against a wall and rocking her new shorter hair, the star appears to be moving towards a sexier, more grown-up feel.
Rocking out: The star tweeted 'wowowowop! bring it on catties' before the show
Branching out: Pixie's new track What Do You Take Me For features rapper Pushka T
Giving it her all: Pixie belted out hit after hit
Pixie's debut effort Turn It Up sold over one million copies, and has spent an impressive 94 weeks on the UK album chart, so her new LP has a lot to live up to.
The singer has been making her presence felt, showing up to a Lispy party only a few nights ago wearing a very tiny pink animal print dress.
On the bill: The Wanted also performed at the Wembley show
Glad We Came? Nathan soaked up the applause
On stage: Brit singing sensation Eliza Dolittle and girl group Parade strutted their stuff
The singer was hosting the bash at Public nightclub, to celebrate the launch of her latest collection with clothing label Lipsy. The Big Gig is concert for Girlguiding UK members aged ten and over.
Singing for the Guides: Loick Essien also took to the stage
Other stars who performed include The Wanted, Parade, Ed Sheeran, Loick Essien, JLS and Eliza Dolittle.
It was clearly a successful night all round, with Jessica Agombar of Parade tweeting: 'Can't actually believ we just played Wembley and they knew every single word to Perfume & Louder wow'
Making the most of the sun: Pixie was spotted arriving at Glasgow airport wearing hot pants and no make-up on Friday
The Wanted's Max George 'Loves Sugababes Dirty Beats'
He's a fan
Photo: WENN
The Wanted singer Max George has spoken out in favour of struggling girl band Sugababes, praising their new single 'Freedom'. The girls decided last week to make the track available for free, after it was snubbed by the majority of mainstream radio stations. The move means it is not eligible to chart. Speaking to Digital Spy, George said: "This one is about heading out with your mates, going on a bender and having a mint time! I'd be loving this song if it came on in a club; it has dirty beats that you could go proper mental to. "This track doesn't really sound like anything else; it's a bit of a first for a girly pop song to have such a grimey sound. I don't think it can topple Dappy's 'No Regrets' from the top, but it's a nice tune - good luck to them!" TheWanted's new single 'Lightning' is out in November. Sugababes' 'Freedom' is out now exclusively from Amazon.
