 | Fame Academy: Encyclopedia II - Fame Academy - Series One 2002
Fame Academy - Series One 2002
Series One of Fame Academy hit screens in 2002. The live shows were presented by Cat Deeley and Patrick Kielty.
Eleven lucky contestants were showcased to the nation in the first live episode, while the first viewer vote of the series was announced in a surprise twist - three other potential finalists would be showcased to the nation - and the public could vote for who they wanted to enter the Academy, making up the final line-up of twelve contestants.
The public voted for Sinead Quinn to enter the Academy, joining Ashley House, Naomi Roper, Chris Manning, Camilla Beeput, Pippa Fulton, Marli Buck, Nigel Wilson, Katie Lewis, Malachi Cush, Ainslie Henderson and Lemar Obika.
The contestants' time in the Academy included singing lessons with Carrie Grant, exhausting dance and exercise classes with Kevin Adams, and song-writing lessons with Pam Sheyne who wrote Christina Aguilera's hit single Genie in a Bottle. Headteacher Richard Park was also never far away, and managed to keep order for most of the series.
The first drama of the series came within the first few days when problems with Naomi's voice meant that she would have to leave the Academy. She was replaced with David Sneddon, who came second in the viewer vote in the first episode of the series, which was won by Sinead.
Each week, the teachers put three contestants on probation. They would have to sing for survival live on Friday night on BBC One, in order to fight for their place in the Academy. The public would then vote for who they wanted to save - the person with the most votes would be safe. However, the fate of the two other contestants on probation was decided by their fellow contestants, who had to vote for who they wanted to save. In the event of a tie in the student vote the public votes would decide who is eliminated. All four contestants were put on probation in the penultimate week, with the public saving two.
As well as the live shows, highlight shows aired at 7pm on Tuesday and Thursday nights on BBC One. A late night uncut show was later added to the schedules. Extra coverage was available on BBC Choice.
As well as the dramas of singing for survival, there were dramas among the contestants too. David and Ainslie were rivals for most of the series. Camilla and Lemar got closer and closer, until on the night when all of the contestants returned to the house, they kissed in one of the bedrooms. Sinead and Malachi were also very close, but a relationship failed to materialise once they left the Academy.
The final three contestants were Lemar, Sinead and David. Lemar came in 3rd place. Sinead came second, while David won the series. Malachi, Ainslie, Lemar, Sinead and David all went onto release singles - David's as a result for the £1 million record contract that he secured when he won the show, while the others secured deals by themselves. However, the contestant with the best career so far has been Lemar.
Ratings were average, but not spectacular. Most of this was blamed on the format being too similar to Pop Idol, while fans of the reality tv element were disappointed by the awkward timings of the highlight shows. Despite this, a second series was commissioned.
Other related archives2005, Adrian Edmondson, Ainslie Henderson, Al Murray, Alex Parks, Alistair Griffin, Ashley House, Audley Anderson, BBC, BBC Choice, BBC One, BBC Prime, BBC Three, British Council, CBBC, CBBC Channel, Camden, Cat Deeley, Celebrity Love Island, Christina Aguilera, Christopher Colquhoun, Comic Relief, Craig Revel Horwood, Daniel Bedingfield, David Grant, David Sneddon, Dawn Steele, Debra Stephenson, Doon Mackichan, Edith Bowman, Endemol, Eurovision Song Contest, Fearne Cotton, February 26, France, Freeview, Gina Yashere, Highgate, ITV, James Fox, Jenny Eclair, Jo Brand, John Thomson, Jon Culshaw, Kim Medcalf, Konnie Huq, Kwame Kwei-Armah, Lemar Obika, Lesley Garrett, London City Hall, Malachi Cush, March 11, March 7, 2003, Marli Buck, McFly, Nick Knowles, Operación Triunfo, Patrick Kielty, Paul Ross, Pop Idol, Red Nose Day, Reggie Yates, Richard Park, River Thames, Robin Gibb, Ruby Wax, Shepperton Studios, Simon Cowell, Simone Stewart, Sinead Quinn, Southwark, Spain, Star Academy, Strictly Come Dancing, Tony Christie, Tower Bridge, Truth or Dare, Ulrika Jonsson, Will Mellor, Witanhurst, celebrities, charity, conflict, dancing, education, entertainment, fitness, opera, reality television, reality tv, television, vision
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Series One 2002", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki |
