X Factor star Joe McElderry tips Malvern teenager Cher Lloyd to win this year's show

Oct 3 2010 by Kat Keogh, Sunday Mercury

X FACTOR winner Joe McElderry has tipped teenage sensation Cher Lloyd to triumph in this year’s competition.

The clean-cut singer said he believed the Malvern girl with a chequered past had the talent to triumph in the TV talent contest.

Joe, 19, said: ‘‘I’m loving this series, it’s going to be really exciting as there are some real characters.

“Cher is really good. She was the one who wanted it most at the auditions. I’m sure that if she had the right guidance she could go all the way.”

The Mercury recently revealed how Cher, 17, was suspended from her Worcestershire secondary school after a playground ‘catfight’ with another girl when they were both in Year 9.

But her stunning TV performances have seen her become a favourite to win the show.

Joe, who was mentored by Cheryl Cole during his triumph last year, also tipped painter and decorator Matt Cardle from Essex.

“Matt is amazing,” he said. “Both he and Cher are very different to all the others because they have real individuality.”

X Factor bosses have come under fire this year for their refusal to drop contestant Chloe Mafia after she was exposed as a hooker.