For the fifth year running The X Factor returns to Saturday primetime ITV1 and ITV2 to entertain the nation...

Wannabe pop stars across the country are preparing to brave the panel of judges and the British public and stake their claim to the winner’s title. And series five, with support again from sponsor Carphone Warehouse, is set to be bigger and better than ever before.

The inimitable Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Dannii Minougue will make up the judging panel once again, joined for the first time by Cheryl Cole, and they’ll be handing out their judgement on contestants within categories male soloists aged 14-24, female soloists 14-24 years, over 25s and groups.

More auditions than ever take place at locations around the UK, from a breathtaking 100,000 applications. Each contestant needs three yeses to pass their audition; not two yeses and ‘I think you’d be good in a boyband’ from Louis – it’s three yeses every time.

Those who survive the audition phase then graduate to bootcamp, where they are put through their paces and mercilessly whittled down, until 24 acts remain.

Each judge is then assigned a category to mentor and it’s off to the judges’ houses… six acts go to each house, but only three will return.

The live show stage of the competition begins in October, as each week we lose the act with the fewest public votes.

In the final three acts will battle it out, until one is crowned winner of The X Factor 2008… who will you vote for?