Radio Times: Review by:; Jane Rackham

For many of us the highlight of this series has had nothing to do with the singing by contestants; nor their sob stories; nor the pantomime antics of the judges; nor even the headline-hitting scandals. It’s been Dermot O’Leary’s strange little dance routines as he walks out onto the stage. It always generates a flurry of comments on the RT live blog — although not always complimentary ones.

However, this is the final so avert your eyes from Dermot’s legendary twirl and focus on the last two acts that remain in the competition. (The third was voted out in the previous edition — but coming third is not to be sniffed at; look at Stacey Solomon and One Direction.) They’ll be singing what’s likely to be the Christmas number one (penned by Mr Barlow himself), before standing next to Dermot as he announces, “The winner of The X Factor 2011 is… (dramatic pause almost as long as an ad break).”

About this programme

21/21. With part one of the final behind them, Little Mix and Marcus Collins have one last chance to impress the public as they perform what will become the winner's single - Cannonball by Damien Rice. Dermot O'Leary then reveals which of them will follow reigning champion Matt Cardle to chart success. Plus, Coldplay and Westlife perform. Last in the series.