''Wawffactor'' (sometimes styled as ''WawFfactor'', English: ''Wow Factor'') is a Welsh television music talent show contested by aspiring pop singers drawn from public auditions. It was broadcast on

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...

between 2003 and 2006 and was produced by Al Fresco. It has now gained fame for contestant Duffy, now a major worldwide artist, who competed in the first series of the show, finishing second behind Lisa Pedrick.

Format

Contestants initially performed in front of a panel of four judges at one of several auditions held around the country. From these, ten people were chosen to progress to the studio heats where after performing each week, one contestant would be eliminated by decision of the judges until three remained. Then during the live final, one contestant would be eliminated by the judges after performing, and a public

televote Televoting (also telephone voting, phone voting, and call-in voting) is a method of decision making and opinion polling conducted by telephone. Televoting can also extend to voting by SMS text message via a mobile cell phone. Broadcast contest ...

decided the winner. The prize was to record an album and music video.

Judges

The four judges for the initial series were former

Catatonia Catatonia is a complex syndrome most commonly seen in people with underlying mood disorders, such as major depressive disorder, or psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia. People with catatonia exhibit abnormal movement and behaviors, wh ...

guitarist Owen Powell, singer & television presenter Emma Walford, musician

Peredur ap Gwynedd Pendulum is an Australian electronic rock band founded in 2002. Pendulum originally formed in the city of Perth, Western Australia, by Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen and Paul "El Hornet" Harding. The band was later expanded to include members Ben M ...

and Radio 1 producer

Aled Haydn Jones Aled Haydn Jones (born 9 August 1976) is a Welsh radio executive, former presenter and former radio producer. In June 2020, he was appointed head of BBC Radio 1, succeeding Ben Cooper. From 2004 until 2012, he worked on ''The Chris Moyles Sho ...

. Emma Walford was replaced by

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

DJ Bethan Elfyn for the second series, and Peredur ap Gwynedd was replaced by musician Huw Chiswell for the third series. The show was presented by Eleri Sion and Welsh singer-songwriter Caryl Parry-Jones acted as a vocal coach to the contestants from the studio heats onwards.

History

The winner of the initial series was Lisa Pedrick, who beat Aimée Duffy and Beth Williams in the final. Duffy would go on to release a UK No. 1 album and single in 2009. The second series saw Rebecca Trehearn triumph over Francesca Hughes in the final. Lisa Haf Davies would have been the third finalist, but was forced to withdraw after contracting

mumps MUMPS ("Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System"), or M, is an imperative, high-level programming language with an integrated transaction processing key–value database. It was originally developed at Massachusetts Gen ...

. The third and final series was won by

Einir Dafydd Einir Dafydd is a Welsh singer who won the third series of the television talent show Wawffactor and the 2007 Cân i Gymru (''A Song for Wales'') competition. Dafydd started her career as the lead singer in the band Garej Dolwen, but first came ...

, who beat

Aimee-Ffion Edwards Aimee-Ffion Edwards (born 1986 or 1987) is a Welsh actress. She is best known for her television roles as Sketch in '' Skins'', Esme Shelby in ''Peaky Blinders'', Sophie in '' Detectorists'', Abi in '' Loaded'', and Shirley Dander in '' Slow H ...

and Nathan Whiteley.

Winners

;Notes *A ^ Lisa Haf Davies would have been third runner-up, however she withdrew due to contracting mumps

References

External links

''Wawffactor''

''Wawffactor''

''Wawffactor''
at the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) {{Duffy 2000s British music television series 2003 British television series debuts British reality television series S4C original programming 2006 British television series endings 2000s Welsh television series