Gornal News & Goings On

NEWS
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Also, have you visited www.markrhodes.me.uk yet?

Mark Makes Final Six Mark with nieces Holly, Laura & Amy.. ..and Sam too! (thanks Sue for photo) It may sound a little mercenary, but Black Country singer Mark Rhodes received a double boost in his bid for stardom on Saturday night. Not only did his performance of More Than a Woman put him through to the last six of ITV's Pop Idol, but Mark's friend and bookies' favourite Andy Scott-Lee was sensationally and inexplicably eliminated. This follows the similarly unfathomable near-elimination of Roxanne Cooper the previous week, and must send out 'voter complacency' warning signals to Mark's growing fan base; even if you're sure he must go through, get on the phone anyway! A 25-1 outsider just a couple of weeks ago, Mark is really 'coming through on the rails'. Susanne Manning and Chris Hide are both struggling a little to control their voices under the pressure of having to choose songs outside their normal repertoire, and Michelle McManus isn't doing quite enough to press a claim for the ultimate prize. To Yampy, it looks like a straight fight between Mark and Sam Nixon - although they hardly look like deadly rivals on this happy photo, kindly sent to us by Mark's sister and number one fan Susan Robbins. But while Mark has got his wobbly weeks behind him, some might say that Sam is due a slip up. Can things get any better for Mark? Well, there's always the prospect of a number one single by Christmas! The 12 Pop Idol finalists are to release John Lennon's Happy Xmas (War Is Over) on 15th December, and the word is that even Cliff Richard will have no answer to its climb to the top of the Yuletide hit parade.

Next: MP on lottery cash..