Union J - The Story. Tina Campanella

      WEEK ONE – HEROES

      6/7 October 2012

      What Union J sang: ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ – Queen

      What the judges said:

      Tulisa: ‘What was important was missing – if you get through this week, I need to hear vocals.’

      Gary: ‘You’re a good band, but Louis, you’ve destroyed their night.’

      Nicole: ‘Well done for performing for the first time as a group.’

      Louis: ‘We’ll get it right next week.’

      The sun was shining on a beautiful October day as the black cab drew up at the Corinthia Hotel in London – a 294-room palace of a hotel, just minutes away from Trafalgar Square.

      As the now four members of Union J got out and looked at the grand entrance, their faces lit up. If they were lucky, this could be their home for the next few months.

      ‘This is a lot nicer than my house at home,’ said Josh, staring in amazement.

      ‘I bet the Queen lives here,’ added JJ, walking up the huge steps to where a smartly dressed doorman was waiting to let them in.

      ‘Welcome to the Corinthia Hotel,’ said a smiling receptionist as she handed over the keys to the suite. She and the rest of the smart hotel’s staff would have a huge job on their hands – keeping out the hordes of X Factor fans who would surely soon arrive, hoping to catch a glimpse of their latest idols.

      ‘This is still like a dream,’ said Josh, as they stepped into the swanky lift. Opening the door to their suite, the boys’ eyes widened still further: it was huge! Plush purple and gold cushions lay across the enormous bed – there was a giant TV screen and even a lounge. It must have felt like being given the keys to their own brand new flat, complete with maid service and room service.

      ‘Shotgun!’ yelled George, leaping onto the bed and claiming it as his own.

      ‘Oh no!’ the others groaned, ‘You’re not shotgunning the bed!’

      But there was plenty of room for everyone in the beautiful suite. And anyway, once they’d unpacked they had little time for exploring.

      They were taken for vocal coaching before heading off to have choreography lessons with legendary dancer and choreographer Brian Friedman. He has worked with stars like Britney Spears and Salt-n-Pepa, and even organised the moves in the film Charlie’s Angels.

      In the huge dance studio, Brian took them through some steps before giving the boys some advice. ‘You have to be the heartbeat of the party,’ he told them. ‘You have to sell that this is a united group. Union is part of your name, so what I need more of from you is interaction with each other.’

      He would be responsible for taking the boys’ raw talent and honing them into stars.

      With their singing and dancing being taken care of, it was then time for the stylists and hairdressers to work on their look. The boys couldn’t believe how much pampering and preening they had to go through. They had their eyebrows plucked, their hair cut and styled and they even went for facials.

      ‘It was literally like a star treatment, that we’re not really used to,’ said George.

      Next they were whisked to the famous This Morning studios, to reveal their feelings on their new band to the nation. George told the presenter that he’d always hoped to be put into a band, so he had got his wish!

      ‘I came into X Factor hoping to be put into a group scenario,’ he said. ‘Especially after my first audition, I felt like I need something around me.’

      Sitting beside him on the sofa, JJ, Josh and Jaymi grinned, showing how happy they were to have George on board.

      Jaymi admitted that it had been a rollercoaster of a journey so far, and he was just happy to be back with a second chance. ‘We auditioned as a three-piece and we didn’t make it through Bootcamp,’ he said. ‘Then Louis rang the house and said, “Guys, I’ve had a problem with one of the groups’ visas so we’re going to offer you a place at Judges’ Houses – plus we’re going to add George”.’

      The boys were obviously happy with their new line-up. They were now one step close to becoming a superband…

      Union J had just over a month to get to know each other properly and rehearse for the live shows. They had to make their acts as slick as their fellow groups, MK1 and GMD3, who had both been together for years and knew each other like brothers.

      Speaking about George, Jaymi told the This Morning viewers: ‘We met at Bootcamp and bonded really, really strongly and when we came out of the competition we stayed in contact. He has just fitted in straight away and we love having him.’

      DID YOU KNOW?

      When Triple J met George at the auditions, they had been thinking of asking him to join their band anyway so it was perfect when Louis became their musical matchmaker!

      That week they also spilled the beans about some of the difficulties they faced in Vegas – with one of the other bands. According to the boys, one group were using some dirty tactics in Sin City. And surprisingly, it was the only girl band in the group – Poisonous Twin – who they described as an absolute nightmare.

      ‘They would just speculate,’ George explained to Heatworld.com. ‘They were just poisonous. All the way through the Judges’ Houses they were speculating about what was going on.’

      At first, they had got on with the two girls – before their gossiping began to drive them nuts. ‘When we got there they were saying, “Oh, we just overhead someone saying that they’re going to split the boybands up and stuff”.’

      Josh said it was a dirty tactic, while sensitive Jaymi seemed upset by it all. ‘It’s sad because we thought they were quite close with us. When we got there, they were really nice to us.’

      Apparently the duo even told Union J that they’d heard rumours that the show’s producers were going to kick George out of the group – after he’d only just joined them.

      ‘They were saying