Dreamgirls Aloud: Cheryl & Co transform themselves into Beyonce-a-likes for their Christmas TV show

They have transformed themselves from reality show winners into pop icons.

Now Girls Aloud have been given there own one-off show on ITV1 this month and seem to have got in to the seasonal spirit.

Dressed in skin tight, silver fishtail dresses, the group share more than a passing resemblance to a box of Christmas crackers.

The five-piece aped the glamorous style of the cast of 2007 movie musical Dreamgirls, which starred Beyonce Knowles as a Sixties singer in the style of Diana Ross.

A show insider said: 'It seemed fitting to have the girls record this special in the very same studio where all their careers began six years ago on Popstars: The Rivals.'

Entitled, The Girls Aloud Party the production will broadcast on ITV1 on December 13.

Last year, the group featured on a series on ITV2 but executives now feel that they are suitable for the main channel.

This has in part been aided by aided by Cheryl Cole’s success as a judge on The X Factor.

The group, made up of Cole, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts, Sarah Harding, and Kimberley Walsh, will perform all of the biggest hits and news songs from their album.


The programme also features collaborations with the Kaiser Chiefs and James Morrison.

Cilla Black, Paul O’Grady and Julie Goodyear also appear on the programme.
Harding said: '2008 has been a great year for us all and what better way to round it off than with a festive special.


'The show is a true Girls Aloud Christmas party and loads of fun.'

Since finding fame in late 2002 the band have had 19 consecutive top ten hit singles.

Cole’s popularity as a judge on The X Factor has raised questions over the group’s long term future but a national tour is scheduled for next year.

'Pub singer' Daniel Evans unanimously voted off The X Factor

Dannii Minogue finally lost a singer from her category in The X Factor after Daniel Evans was voted off the show by judges.

Another of Dannii's acts, Rachel Hylton, was also in the bottom two following the public vote but the mentor was spared having to chose between the pair after the other three judges all voted for Daniel to leave the competition.

Voting off Daniel seemed the obvious choice for Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh, who have continually slated his performances on the live shows.
Cheryl Cole also said she wanted to send the 38-year-old pool cleaner home in favour of Rachel.

In the sing off, Daniel sang 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' which finally won him a compliment from Simon Cowell - but it was still not enough to keep him in the competition.

Simon said: "You chose a good song and I believe you mean what you're singing.

"But this may come as a surprise, the person I am sending home is Daniel."
Taking defeat graciously, Daniel, who first auditioned for the show after being encouraged to do so by his late wife, said: "It has been the best experience I've ever had - ups and downs. Thanks to everyone who voted."

He added his family and Dannii had kept him going through out the competition after he had been criticised every week by Simon and Louis.

Evans said: "I couldn't honestly picture myself winning the show, and obviously now it's the case. Winning was never in my mind. I just dreamt of getting to the final. I was upsetting the odds every week by staying in. The public kept me there. I'm upset to be out. I was hoping to push on a little bit longer for us older people.

"To be honest, I didn't expect to get this far and every week when the public kept me in, it was best feeling in the world. Thanks to the public I got this far."

Evans said: 'It's no secret the judges are not my biggest fans. I've been through worse than that, I can take a few words from those two. It's no problem. They're entitled to say what they want, they're entitled to their opinion.

'Maybe I'm not their cup of tea. But the public showed for six weeks that they liked me. I do think I had something to offer. The public saw that but the judges didn't, that's the way it goes.'

Evans hit back at criticism in the tabloid press that X Factor producers had played on his 'sob story' of the recent death of his wife, leaving him to bring up his one-year-old daughter, Ana Maria, alone.
He said: 'Of all things I heard that was the one that hurt me the most when someone said I was only progressing because of the death of my wife and I would never ever play on that story. But the reason I came into this competition is my wife had passed away and it was her wish. I only mentioned it because I was asked.'

Evans was also accused by the tabloids of hiding his two other children from previous relationships.

He insisted: 'Right at the start, on my first audition it says 'Daniel father-of-three' and my daughter and my son's mother were there. So why people think I'm keeping them a secret I don't know. They were there. I would never make a secret of my children I'm proud of my kids, I love all my kids. My kids know I love them. I've got nothing to prove to them.'

Earlier in the show, Daniel had performed 'It's Not Unusual' alongside a troupe of female dancers and a mini.

Simon said of his Tom Jones cover: 'It was like watching a drunk dad at a wedding.'

While Daniel had so far sailed through each round on the public vote, despite Simon and Louis' opposition, this week he found himself in the bottom two with Rachel.

She had failed to win over the public with her version of Amy Winehouse's You Know I'm No Good.

The 26-year-old had first impressed the judges singing the song in her audition and did enough to convince them she should remain in the competition.
Last night's show also saw the return of Diana Vickers, 17, who didn't perform last week after coming down with laryngitis.

She was overjoyed to be voted through to another week after she admitted her performance suffered from her recent illness.

Meanwhile, JLS got the audience on their feet with their Beatles medley and Alexandra Burke wowed the judges with her rendition of Joe Cocker's You are so beautiful.

After controversially surviving last week's sing-off against Laura White, Ruth Lorenzo proved her worth with a powerful cover of Robbie William's Angels.

And the judges tipped 16-year-old Eoghan Quigg for the final after he impressed singing George Michael's One More Try.

“I can see the star quality in you. You scare me for the final!” Cheryl said.

In the results show, Leona Lewis, who has become a global star since winning The X Factor in 2006, returned to perform a cover of Snow Patrol's Run.

Simon Cowell commended her for an 'incredible' performance after the singer admitted it was 'frightening and exhilarating to be back'.