X factor who is in the final 12 2011

Long live Little Mix! But were Little Mix worthy X Factor winners? Of the three acts to go into the final weekend, yes. Amelia Lily, who came third, spent most of the series on the sidelines waiting for Frankie Cocozza to self-destruct, so it would have been slightly unfair on the others for her to win. Marcus Collins, despite his energy and stage presence, seemed unable to get through any song without whooping like a knackered ambulance.

And that left Little Mix, who quickly learned the value of appealing to teenage girls. That, more than anything else, might have been their masterstroke.

They'll both do OK. The top four contestants from last year all ended up with record deals — Swagger Jagger was an enormous hit for Cher Lloyd, One Direction are the hottest new boyband in the country and Rebecca Ferguson is being hailed as the voice of In fact, compared with these successes, last year's winner Matt Cardle looks a bit like a minnow, albeit a minnow in a manky hat.

Little Mix's win topped off a weird year for X Factor. Although it's still incredibly popular, this has been the first time the show's ratings haven't improved upon the previous year. They both sang their favourite song from the series so far, a Christmas song and their versions of the winner's single in front of a 10,strong audience at London's Wembley Arena. After they sang, judge Louis Walsh predicted the group would be the biggest girl band in the UK "by a mile".

Walsh described the singer as "a born little pop star" with fellow judge Gary Barlow calling it "an amazing performance". However the performance was not enough to keep the year-old from Middlesbrough in the competition as she received the fewest votes from the public. Speaking on The Xtra Factor after the first instalment of the final, Simon Cowell - who left the judging panel this year to front a US version - called the show "absolutely amazing - one of the best finals I've ever seen".

When asked who he thought would win the competition, Cowell replied: "Without a doubt, Little Mix won the night. Sunday's show also featured performances from Westlife, Coldplay and the final 12 X Factor finalists perform a mash-up of some of this year's biggest pop hits.

Fans watching music videos on YouTube and Vevo will be presented with cinema-style age certificates from Thursday. Tuesday's devastating attacks in Brussels show IS's European network is still at large, despite a year of intensive efforts by security forces to close it down.

Series 9. Jonjo Kerr 27, Chorley, Lancashire. James Michael 20, Widnes, Cheshire. Nu Vibe , various places. Sami Brookes 31, Rhyl, Denbighshire. Sophie Habibis 20, Tufnel Park, London. The Risk , various places. Johnny Robinson 45, Harrow, London. Frankie Cocozza 18, Brighton.

Kitty Brucknell 26, Cheltenham. Craig Colton 23, Kirkby. Janet Devlin 17, Gortin, County Tyrone. Misha B 19, Manchester. Amelia Lily 17, Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough. Marcus Collins 23, Liverpool.