X Factor is at one very particular extreme of the music spectrum: Saturday night light entertainment.

In fact, it doesn't really have much to do with music. The music is tertiary. What it's really about is STORIES. It is the Cinderella story, told over and over again. Someone getting to go to the ball, against all the odds. The singing is just an aside, an opportunity to wear spangly clothes.

X Factor has nothing in common with Jools Holland, or the late Top Of The Pops; it doesn't even have much in common with the pop video channels like MTV or The Hits. Its spiritual brethren are Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Neighbours or the National Lottery.

I think kids who are interested in music recognise that discrepancy. They watch X Factor for the human drama, like a soap; they go elsewhere for music. That's why few X Factor winners go on to anything, cos they're pointless outside of the story.