All Together Now for X Factor favourite Michael Rice

A Hartlepool singer is hoping for a second crack at the big time when he appears on a new TV talent show this weekend.
Michael  Rice performing on All Together NowMichael  Rice performing on All Together Now
Michael Rice performing on All Together Now

Michael Rice hit the right note with fans when he appeared on the X Factor in 2014.

The then 16-year-old won universal praise from all four of the show’s judges at the open auditions in Newcastle.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The former chip shop worker captured the hearts of the public with a breathtaking performance of Whitney Houston’s I Look to You on the ITV show.

He made it through to the Boot Camp stage after being put through in the Wembley auditions in front of 5,000 people.

But he failed to make it to the second stage of Boot Camp.

The student, from Belle Vue, Hartlepool, who was studying music at York College, was inundated with messages of support on Twitter.

After exiting the X Factor, he supported Nicole Scherzinger and Jess Glynne while writing his own music in London.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And he found fame again on the internet in August 2015, when a clip of him busking in York posted by a passer-by on YouTube, went viral, attracting more than half a million views.

Now he is returning to the nation’s screens, taking centre stage in the first episode of All together Now, the new centrepiece of BBC One’s Saturday night schedule.

Hosted by comedian Rob Beckett, the new show is a talent competion with a twist.

Instead of a panel of four judges, competitors will perform in front of The 100 – a unique panel of music experts and performers from all over the UK.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

If any of The 100 like what they hear, they can stand up, join in and sing along.

The greater the number that join in, the higher the act’s score.

The two performers from each heat who do best will go through to the series final and the chance to walk away with a £50,000 cash prize.

Heading up The 100 is pop icon Geri Horner - better known as Ginger Spice, of the world’s biggest selling girl band, the Spice Girls.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I’m so excited to be part of this show. It’s about celebrating talent, uniting people from all walks of life, feeling good AND singing,” she said.”

“It’s a whole lot of joy standing up together on a Saturday night.”

To find out whether Michael can get The 100 on their feet and make it to the final, tune in to BBC1 at 7.15pm on Saturday.