The X Factor (British series 15)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. The fifteenth series began airing on ITV on 1 September 2018, presented by Dermot O'Leary. Simon Cowell returned alongside new judges Louis Tomlinson, Ayda Field and Robbie Williams who replace departing judges Nicole Scherzinger, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. Nile Rodgers filled in for Williams while he was away on his tour for weeks 3–5 of the live shows. On 2 December, Jamaican-born singer Dalton Harris won the series making him the first foreign contender to win the UK show. This was the only series that featured Tomlinson, Field and Williams as judges.
Judges and presenters
On 6 June 2018, it was announced that Sharon Osbourne would return to judge the fifteenth series, but only for the live shows, due to her ongoing work commitments in the United States. The next day, long-serving judge Louis Walsh announced that after thirteen years on the show, he would leave to focus on other projects. Earlier in the year, it was reported that Nicole Scherzinger would not return as a judge for the fifteenth series. On 30 September 2018, Osbourne announced her decision to no longer appear as a judge during the live shows, stating that she had "seen the new judges finding their rhythm and are doing brilliantly".Simon Cowell confirmed his return as head judge and Dermot O'Leary’s return as presenter. After much speculation, it was announced on 16 July 2018 that Ayda Field, Louis Tomlinson and Robbie Williams would join Cowell on the series' judging panel to replace Osbourne, Scherzinger and Walsh.
On 30 July 2018, a promo for the seriesfeaturing judges Cowell, Field and Williamsaired during a Love Island commercial break on ITV2.
On 23 August 2018, it was announced that Xtra Bites would return after a first series, presented by Becca Dudley again, and she would be joined by a co-host named Tinea Taylor.
On 2 November 2018, it was revealed that Nile Rodgers would fill in for Williams on the panel during some of the live shows, due to Williams' touring commitments. Rodgers sat alongside Williams on 3 November, before fully substituting for him on 4, 10, 11 & 17 November. In a statement, Rodgers stated: "I had such a great time with Louis at the Judge's House in Ibiza a couple of weeks ago that when the opportunity came to step in for Robbie I could not say ", "From Chic and Sister Sledge to Duran Duran and Daft Punk, I've had great experiences with Groups in my career, so I look forward to giving them as much support as I can while Rob is away!". Williams returned to the panel on 24 November.
Selection process
Auditions
Auditions for performers took place only at London's SSE Arena, Wembley, on 18–20, 22–24 and 26–28 July 2018.Deliberations
Instead of the traditional bootcamp stages, a deliberation stage was introduced to cut down the number of performers at the six-chair challenge. This took place on 30 July 2018 at the Tobacco Dock in London. It was broadcast on a single episode on 23 September 2018 after the final auditions show.After the "deliberation" and "reveal" stages, but before the start of the "six-chair challenge", the judges found out the categories they are mentoring: Cowell mentored the "Girls", Field mentored the "Over 28s", Williams mentored the "Groups", and Tomlinson mentored the "Boys".
Six Chair Challenge
The Six Chair Challenge took place over the course of three days, from 1–3 August 2018, at the SSE Arena in Wembley. A new twist was added with the introduction of a golden button, similar to Britain's Got Talents Golden Buzzer. When this was pressed, the act in question was guaranteed a 'Safe Seat', and would go straight through to Judges' Houses. The Six Chair Challenge was aired over 3 episodes starting on 29 September 2018 and finished on 6 October 2018.Judges' Houses
It was announced by O'Leary during an appearance on This Morning that the Judges' Houses would be filmed in late September 2018, and that three of the judges' houses would be in Los Angeles ; Tomlinson's houses would be hosted in Ibiza. Cowell judged from Malibu, while Field and Williams each judged their categories separately from their home in Beverley Hills. The guest judges were announced to be: Adam Lambert and Leona Lewis in assisting Field, David Walliams with Williams, and Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, Ryan Seacrest, Diane Warren, Babyface, Lewis and Sinitta to assist Cowell, who hosted a house party consisting of various singers, songwriters and record producers for the Girls to perform in front of. Liam Payne and Nile Rodgers were announced to assist Tomlinson.Maria Laroco was not able to secure the correct visa in time to travel to Malibu with the remaining Girls for this stage of the competition. Unlike similar instances where the affected contestants withdrew from the competition, Laroco sang to Cowell via video link from a London studio.
16 finalists were put through to the live shows at this stage, four from each category. This last-minute change was lobbied by Cowell who was unable to narrow his Girls down to just three; the other judges were then allowed one more act each for their own categories as well.
| Judge | Category | Location | Assistants | Acts eliminated |
| Cowell | Girls | Malibu | Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, Ryan Seacrest, Diane Warren, Babyface, Michelle Visage, Adam Lambert, Leona Lewis, Sinitta, Paul Anka, Tricky Stewart and Dallas Austin. | Georgia Burgess, Maria Laroco |
| Field | Over 28s | Beverly Hills | Adam Lambert and Leona Lewis | Ricky John, Louise Setara |
| Tomlinson | Boys | Ibiza | Liam Payne and Nile Rodgers | J-Sol, Thomas Pound |
| Williams | Groups | Beverly Hills | David Walliams | Panda and Burgandy, Sweet Sense |
Finalists
Key:| Act | Age | Hometown | Category | Result |
| Dalton Harris | 24 | Clarendon, Jamaica | Boys | Winner |
| Scarlett Lee | 21 | Surrey | Girls | Runner-up |
| Anthony Russell | 28 | Bootle | Boys | 3rd place |
| Acacia & Aaliyah | 15 & 14 | Leyland | Groups | 4th place |
| Brendan Murray | 21 | Tuam, Republic of Ireland | Boys | 5th place |
| Danny Tetley | 36 | Wigan | Over 28s | 6th place |
| Shan Ako | 25 | Croydon | Girls | 7th place |
| Bella Penfold | 19 | Essex | Girls | 8th place |
| Giovanni Spano | 33 | West London | Over 28s | 9th place |
| Misunderstood | 25 & 27 | London | Groups | 10th place |
| Molly Scott | 16 | County Durham | Girls | 11th place |
| United Vibe | 17–20 | Various | Groups | 12th place |
| LMA Choir | 19–40 | Liverpool | Groups | 13th place |
| Janice Robinson | 50 | Galveston, United States | Over 28s | 14th place |
| Armstrong Martins | 23 | Lagos, Nigeria/London | Boys | 15th place |
| Olatunji Yearwood | 32 | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | Over 28s | 16th place |
Live shows
The finalists were announced after each category performed at Judges' Houses. There will be 16 finalists this year. The Live Shows will be broadcast for 7 weeks from 20 October to 2 December. This year the live shows reverts to the previous format of all performances on the Saturday night and the results show on the Sunday night. However, there are 16 finalists and a reduced number of live shows, so almost all of the live result shows had double eliminations.Nile Rodgers temporarily replaced Williams on the panel, due to touring commitments. Rodgers appeared in Williams's place from 4–18 November.
For the first time since 2008, there was no elimination on the Saturday. Instead, all 3 finalists progressed the Sunday live final results show.
Musical guests
and Rak-Su, the winners of the previous series, performed on the first live results show. Little Mix and Kylie Minogue performed on the second live results show. James Arthur and Jonas Blue, Liam Payne and Lennon Stella performed on the third live results show. Michael Bublé, Olly Murs and Lady Leshurr performed on the fourth live results show. Cheryl and Tom Walker performed on the fifth live results show. Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus appeared on the sixth live show. Zara Larsson performed on the sixth live results show. The live final featured a performance from Robbie Williams on the live final results show.Final venue
Unlike the previous series where the live final was held at The ExCeL Center in London, instead this year's final was held at the normal venue which is The SSE Arena, Wembley in London.Winners single
The winners single will be the winning contestant's duet from the Sunday result show with all proceeds going to the children's charities Together for Short Lives and Shooting Star Chase. It is the eighth year running that the Chancellor of the Exchequer has waived any VAT on The X FactorResults summary
;Colour keyLive show details
Week 1 (20/21 October)
- Theme: This is Me
- Musical guests: Keala Settle and Rak-Su
;Judges' votes to eliminate
- Field: Armstrong Martins – backed her own act, Janice Robinson, saying she deserves to be in the competition.
- Tomlinson: Janice Robinson – backed his own act, Armstrong Martins.
- Williams: Armstrong Martins – gave no reason.
- Cowell: Armstrong Martins – said that despite Martins being more interesting, Robinson was the better singer.
Week 2 (27/28 October)
- Theme: Guilty Pleasures
- Musical guests: Little Mix and Kylie Minogue
;Judges' votes to eliminate
- Williams: Brendan Murray – backed his own act, LMA Choir.
- Tomlinson: LMA Choir – backed his own act, Brendan Murray.
- Cowell: Brendan Murray – gave no reason.
- Field: LMA Choir – could not decide so chose to take it to deadlock.
Week 3 (3/4 November)
- Theme: Fright Night
- Musical guests: James Arthur and Jonas Blue, Liam Payne & Lennon Stella
This week's results show featured a double elimination. Lines were originally scheduled to be frozen on Sunday at 7:30 pm, 60 minutes before the results show, the act receiving the fewest votes leaving the competition at the beginning of the show before lines would reopen and the two acts with the next fewest votes would then perform in the sing-off. However, due to a technical issue that affected the sound during Danny Tetley and Anthony Russell's performances, Saturday's public vote was cancelled and lines instead opened in the results show on Sunday. At the start of the live results show, all of the performances were shown in full before the public vote opened for 14 minutes.
;Judges' votes to eliminate
- Rodgers: Molly Scott – based on the sing-off performances, effectively backing Williams' own act, Acacia & Aaliyah.
- Cowell: Acacia & Aaliyah – backed his own act, Molly Scott.
- Field: Molly Scott – based on the sing-off performances.
- Tomlinson: Molly Scott – said both acts have potential but he was not sure Scott was "quite there yet".
Week 4 (10/11 November)
- Theme: "Movies"
- Musical guests: Michael Bublé and Olly Murs featuring Lady Leshurr
;Judges' votes to eliminate
- Rodgers: Giovanni Spano – backed Williams' own act, Acacia & Aaliyah.
- Field: Acacia & Aaliyah – backed her own act, Giovanni Spano, saying he brought fun and vital entertainment to the competition.
- Tomlinson: Giovanni Spano – believed Acacia & Aaliyah had a future as recording artists while Spano had more of a future in musical theatre.
- Cowell: Giovanni Spano – gave no specific reason but praised both acts' sing-off performances.
Week 5: Quarter-Final (17/18 November)
- Theme: Big Band
- Musical guests: Tom Walker and Cheryl
During the results show, Cowell originally told the acts that the final six would go on The X Factor Live Tour in 2019. After the elimination of Shan Ako, Cowell stated that he would allow both her and Penfold to join the final six on tour as well. His statement meant that the final eight would perform on the tour rather than the final six.
;Judges' votes to eliminate
- Cowell: Acacia & Aaliyah – backed his own act, Shan Ako.
- Rodgers: Shan Ako – backed Williams' own act, Acacia & Aaliyah.
- Tomlinson: Acacia & Aaliyah – based on "vocal ability" without being led by his emotions.
- Field: Shan Ako – praised both acts' sing-off performances but could not decide so chose to take it to deadlock.
Week 6: Semi-Final (24/25 November)
;24 November- Theme: Get Me to the Final & Mamma Mia
In addition, following all of the act's first performance during Saturday's show, each act performed a segment from an ABBA song where Björn Ulvaeus joined the judging panel for the performances.
| Act | Category | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Brendan Murray | Boys | 1 | "Run" | 11 | "I Have a Dream" | Eliminated |
| Danny Tetley | Over 28s | 2 | "This Is My Life" | 12 | "Thank You for the Music" | Eliminated |
| Dalton Harris | Boys | 3 | "Feeling Good" | 7 | "SOS" | Safe |
| Acacia & Aaliyah | Groups | 4 | "Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 2"/"I Win" | 10 | "Money, Money, Money" | Safe |
| Anthony Russell | Boys | 5 | "Livin' on a Prayer" | 8 | "The Name of the Game" | Safe |
| Scarlett Lee | Girls | 6 | "This Is Me" | 9 | "The Winner Takes It All" | Safe |
;25 November
- Theme: Get Me to the Final
- Musical guests: Zara Larsson
- Cowell: Scarlett Lee – based on the sing-off performances, and said he would have made the same choice even if Scarlett Lee was not his own act; he said without her, the final would not be the same.
- Williams: Acacia & Aaliyah – backed his own act, Acacia & Aaliyah.
- Field: Scarlett Lee – based on the sing-off performances.
- Tomlinson: Scarlett Lee – based on the vocals only in the sing-off performances.
Week 7: Final (1/2 December)
- Theme: No theme; Celebrity duets
- Group Performance: "Let Me Entertain You"/"Rock DJ"/"Freedom"
- Musical guests: James Arthur & Anne-Marie and George Ezra
| Act | Category | Order | First song | Order | Second song |
| Anthony Russell | Boys | 1 | "Let It Be" | 4 | "Leave a Light On" with Tom Walker |
| Dalton Harris | Boys | 2 | "A Song for You" | 5 | "Beneath Your Beautiful" with Emeli Sandé |
| Scarlett Lee | Girls | 3 | "Your Song" | 6 | "Angels" with Robbie Williams |
;2 December
- Theme: Winners duets
- Musical guests: Pinkfong, Ellie Goulding, Nile Rodgers & Chic and Take That
| Act | Category | Order | Song | Results |
| Anthony Russell | Boys | 1 | "I Predict a Riot" with Kaiser Chiefs | Third Place |
| Scarlett Lee | Girls | 2 | "One More Sleep" with Leona Lewis | Runner-up |
| Dalton Harris | Boys | 3 | "The Power of Love" with James Arthur | Winner |
Reception
Ratings
As of September 2018, all official ratings include those who watched on demand via the ITV Hub.| Episode | Air date | Official rating | Weekly rank |
| Auditions 1 | 7.59 | 1 | |
| Auditions 2 | 6.43 | 8 | |
| Auditions 3 | 6.57 | 9 | |
| Auditions 4 | 6.38 | 13 | |
| Auditions 5 | 7.08 | 7 | |
| Auditions 6 | 6.08 | 15 | |
| Auditions 7 | 6.59 | 11 | |
| Auditions 8 | 6.34 | 15 | |
| Six-chair challenge 1 | 6.27 | 15 | |
| Six-chair challenge 2 | 6.38 | 12 | |
| Six-chair challenge 3 | 6.38 | 11 | |
| Judges Houses 1 | 6.19 | 13 | |
| Judges Houses 2 | 6.88 | 11 | |
| Judges Houses 3 | 6.26 | 14 | |
| Live show 1 | 5.55 | 15 | |
| Live results 1 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live show 2 | 5.29 | 15 | |
| Live results 2 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live show 3 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live results 3 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live show 4 | 5.03 | 15 | |
| Live results 4 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live show 5 | 4.99 | 15 | |
| Live results 5 | 5.42 | 13 | |
| Live show 6 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live results 6 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live final 1 | Outside top 15 | ||
| Live final 2 | Outside top 15 |