The wax factor

Fans who can't get enough of the sniping and singing of X Factor on the TV, can now test their mettle against the coldest judges in pop- literally, th

10:30 26 August 2005

They have been criticised in the past for being too fiery but the X-Factor judges would be best advised to cool things down a little now they are made of wax.

London's Madame Tussauds has rolled out its latest exhibition in tandem with the launch of the latest series of the ITV1 talent trek, and it features lifesize waxwork models of Simon Cowell, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh.

One of the primary attractions of the exhibit is the chance for fans to be laughed at by tourists while they sing their favourite songs, a la karaoke, and be judged by the inanimate Cowell, Osbourne and Walsh.

The first contestant to try out the exhibit was 11-year-old Joe Cooper from Kent, who sang Abba's Mamma Mia. Surpringly the voice-box driven nasty-candle that is Simon Cowell was enthusiastic to the point of sycophancy over the performance.

"Unbelievable, I think we have found a real star," spooged Cowell, though Louis was less sure.

"It was ordinary, it doesn't get my vote," mused a lifeless Louis, to which still-life Simon retorted: "Louis, are you deaf?"

And shop-window Sharon rolled out her classic, albeit grammatically questionable line of "I love you so much, so real, so real".

Spokeswoman for Tussaud's, Diane Moon, said: "People coming to the museum wonder what it is like to be famous themselves as well as looking at the famous figures.

"This gives them the chance to be famous for five minutes. Visitors who are too shy to take to the stage can stand back and cringe or cheer on the singers."

Madame Tussauds ran a similar exhibition two years ago with Pop Idol, again featuring Simon Cowell.