Tabby Callaghan (born Trevor John O'Callaghan; 22 April 1981,

County Sligo County Sligo ( , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in ...

, Ireland) is an Irish musician. He was the last contestant eliminated on the

first series First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

of ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'' in 2004.

Early career

Callaghan played in many collectives and groups as a teenager growing up in Sligo. With his brother Dominic he formed his first real band, called ''Petronella'' around 1997. The band had some success in Ireland and their single "Feeling So Low" entered the Irish top 20 singles chart.

''The X Factor''

After Petronella dissolved, Callaghan then formed Boom, later renamed DZ5. DZ5 auditioned for the first series of ITV talent show ''

'', unaware that the new show's willingness to accept groups only applied to vocal groups. The panel of judges,

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality and businessman. He has judged on the British television talent competition shows ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003), ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor UK ...

Louis Walsh Michael Louis Vincent Walsh (born 5 August 1952) is an Irish music manager and television personality. He has managed Johnny Logan (singer), Johnny Logan, Boyzone, Jedward and Westlife, four of Ireland's most successful pop acts in the 1990s an ...

and

Sharon Osbourne Sharon Rachel Osbourne (; born 9 October 1952) is an English-American television personality, music manager, and author. She is married to heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne and came to prominence while appearing on '' The Osbournes'' (2002–2 ...

, advised Callaghan to re-audition as an individual contestant in order to proceed in the competition. He was selected by Osbourne to be one of her acts at the live shows. He was the last contestant eliminated overall in the semi-final. He later revealed that he had been advised by the show's producers to drop the 'O' in his surname to make it sound more commercial and less Irish.

Post ''X Factor''

After ''The X Factor'', Callaghan participated in a fly-on-the-wall "

rockumentary A concert film or concert movie is a film that showcases a live performance from the perspective of a concert goer, the subject of which is an extended live performance or concert, by either a musician or a stand-up comedian. Early history One ...

" titled ''What Tabby Did Next'' which was shown ITV in August 2005, coinciding with the release of his debut single in Ireland. The single, called "Number One", was originally titled "Holes in My Shoes". The A-side, "Number One", was an original track penned by Callaghan himself and Mark Hudson (who had worked with him on ''The X Factor''). The B-side was a cover of the

Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...

hit " My Oh My" which had been performed on the show. The single, only released in Ireland, entered the Irish charts at No. 7 in the first week of its release.Listing for Callaghan on IMDB
/ref>"Tabby's coming of age marked by RTE launch of debut sing"
Unison.ie; accessed 25 August 2014. In 2005, Callaghan performed at

The Cavern Club The Cavern Club is a music venue on Mathew Street, Liverpool, England. The Cavern Club opened on 16 January 1957 as a jazz club, later becoming a centre of the rock and roll scene in Liverpool in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The club beca ...

in Liverpool, England. During the gig, Callaghan kicked off his boots in order to play in his bare feet, which is his trademark; however, his boots were taken from the stage by a fan. The Cavern Club management then provided him with an old pair of boots in their office which had been left behind by

Ronnie Wood Ronald David Wood (born 1 June 1947) is an English rock musician, best known as a member of the Rolling Stones since 1975, and a member of Faces and the Jeff Beck Group. Wood began his career in 1964, playing lead guitar with several Brit ...

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

. He joined the Belfast CityBeat contest '' Young Star Search'' for the 2008 season.

Discography

Albums

*''Bread vs. Art'' (2010)

Singles

Petronella

*"Drowning" (1999) *"Feeling So Low" (1999) *"Oh No" (1999) *"Greed" (2000)

Tabby

*"Number One" (August 2005) *"Gotta Get Control" (April 2011)

Tabby and The Tsars

*"Never Forget You" (2006) *"Brendan's Song" (2006) *"Never Forget You" (2006) *"Take A Swing" (2006) *”Row The Boat” (2023)

References

External links

Tabby Callaghan official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callaghan, Tabby 1981 births Living people Irish male guitarists Musicians from County Sligo People educated at Summerhill College The X Factor (British TV series) contestants 21st-century Irish male singers 21st-century Irish guitarists