Ballyfermot Belle charms her way to next round of X Factor

THE Belle of Ballyfermot has done it again.

Last night Mary Byrne, the Tesco checkout lady, wowed the X Factor judges and viewing public to make it through to the next round of the competition.

Her soulful rendition on Saturday of ‘Could it be Magic’ by Barry Manilow proved a hit even with those judges who had criticised her previous performances as being too similar.

The 50-year-old checkout operator had promised to show “more variety” in her performances and her latest display during the fourth live show on X Factor 2010 impressed the audience as well as the judges.

However, the dream has died for fellow Irish X Factor hopeful Rebecca Creighton when dreams of stardom for Belle Amie, the girl band she sings with, ended when they were booted out of the contest.

The girl band ended up in the bottom two with Katie Waissel after failing to impress viewers with their rendition of Venus by Bananarama.

Judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Louis Walsh and Dannii Minogue failed to agree on an act to send home so Belle Amie, the act with the fewest votes, were booted off.

In a bid to stay in the competition they sang Kelly Clarkson’s Breakaway.

“They have been a pleasure to work with,” their mentor Cowell said to host Dermot O’Leary. “I do not think it is the end for this group – they are survivors.”

The four girls, Esther Campbell, Sophia Wardman, Geneva Lane and Rebecca Creighton, entered X Factor as solo artists, but were given a second chance in the final stages of Bootcamp when they were put together as a group.

They are the sixth act to leave the contest.

Waissel burst into tears after she sang Trust in Me by Etta James in a bid to save herself.

Cowell and Walsh both opted to send Waissel home while Cole and Minogue sent home the girl band.

It was the first time on this series that the judges failed to choose an act to leave the show.

All 11 hopefuls opened the show with US rock band Bon Jovi by singing hit Livin’ On A Prayer.

British jazz funk act Jamiroquai also took to the stage to perform comeback single White Knuckle Ride.

Rihanna sang her new single Only Girl (In The World) – which became the second highest first week sales of 2010 for a non-charity single in the British charts.