Stars out in force

Nicole Talmer (14) was the winner on the night but, according to organiser Steve Reid, the real winner on the night was the area.

“It was a fantastic night of music,” he said. “The level of talent was unbelievable and all the 16 finalists can be proud of their efforts.”

Nicole, who lives in Hapton, will now go on to perform alongside N-Dubz, McFly, The Saturdays and Scouting For Girls in front of thousands of fans at the Towneley Live festival on Saturday, August 13th.

She will also be releasing her first single, “Every Day”, which will be produced through Doc Redeye Music and recorded at the ACE Centre’s Studio 11 in Nelson.

Mr Reid added: “It wasn’t just about one person winning, it was about young people from in and around the area being able to come along and show what they can do.

“Everybody on the night was really good and there were some exceptional performances – something all the judges agreed on. The judges were all experienced professionals as well. Ryan Oxley is the lead singer with up-and-coming band Juice, and is now touring Europe. Mags Walker worked exclusively for BMG music and now still works in the industry running PR company Practical Marketing. Bobby Elliott (The Hollies) is one of the few musicians in the world featured in the ‘Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame’ and Andrew Falkner is head of A&R at Jet Records.

“We had some really good feedback on the night and we’re looking now at making it into an annual event, possibly under the name of ‘The Teen Dream’.”

Tickets for Towneley Live can be purchased from www.hmvtickets.com and at local HMV stores while tickets are also available from Burnley Mechanics.