RINGWOOD pop hopefuls, Luke and Samantha were thrilled to get through to the X Factor’s Boot Camp – but their dreams of stardom were not to come true this year.

Undeterred, they’re back on the pot-holed path to stardom and have made the regional final of Open Mic UK 2010 at Portsmouth Guildhall tonight.

Having been brought together by a school production of Jesus Christ Superstar, Luke Beavis and Samantha Laurilla have been a couple for four years and have appeared alongside each other as Marius and Eponine in Les Misérables and Troy and Gabriella in High School Musical.

Alongside some 200,000 other hopefuls Luke and Samantha stood in line for hours, waiting for their moment on that infamous stage to prove that they had the X Factor. Their waiting paid off, as they successfully reached the final 100 acts at Boot Camp.

Here, they report from behind the scenes of The X Factor… “Auditioning in front of the judges was terrifying! We performed to over 3,000 people, plus Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Cheryl Cole. After years of watching X Factor on television, it was seemed so surreal to be there ourselves.

“Standing on stage, on the legendary “X”, it was very daunting to look out and see three of the most famous faces in the music industry staring back at us, three people who could make our dreams come true.

“After singing two songs, You Are the Music in Me and Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, Louis was the first to voice his opinion and we were so happy when he gave us a “yes”!

“He really liked us and thought the public would too. Unfortunately, Simon gave us a “no”, saying we were too sweet and the equivalent of Barbie and Ken on stage!

“Our fate rested in Cheryl’s hands. We were over the moon when she said “yes” and couldn’t believe we were going to Boot Camp!

“When we arrived we were really excited. Surrounded by 210 very talented acts, the competition suddenly became very real, as we realised we were all competing for the same prize and it was crucial to stand out from the crowd.

“We were classed as a group and competition in this category was fierce, however we believed that we had something unique to offer and were determined to do our best. Our first test was to prepare the song Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now in only 24 hours. We were really pleased at how our performance went and obviously the judges were too, as when the 210 acts were dramatically and unexpectedly halved.

“We were now one of the final 16 groups in the top 100 acts!

“The rest of Boot Camp was incredible, as we had numerous interviews with Dermot O’Leary, one-to-one tuition with the singing coaches and a dance workshop as camera crews captured every moment.

“For our final performance, we chose Your Song. Unlike many acts, who were stopped after only a verse and chorus, we were allowed to sing our whole song and we even saw Simon tapping his foot along with the music.

“Waiting to find out if we had made it to judges’ houses was nerve-racking and, although we were disappointed we didn’t make it, we can proudly say we were really happy with our performance and that we did our best.

“X Factor really was the ultimate audition. We are so proud of our achievements and we learned so much from our time on the show and consider ourselves extremely lucky to be a part of the whole production. Boot Camp was a challenging and exhausting week, but it gave us a glimpse of the lifestyle that we have always dreamed about and has sparked our determination to succeed.

“It was amazing and we wouldn’t change it for the world! Who knows, we may even enter again next year...