[Kaz]

Noticed the undernoted article on Ananova today, comparing the voting out of one Pop Idol hopeful each week to Big Brother:

I'm not arrogant, says Pop Idol's Rik

Pop Idol hopeful Rick Waller says he's never been arrogant in his life.

He was told he was getting "big-headed" by judge Simon Cowell after his latest performance on the show. Rick went on to win the public vote along with train driver Aaron Bayley.

"One thing I've never been in my life is arrogant," Rick told the official Pop Idol website. "Like a lot of people, Simon believes the whole 'Vote For The Fat Bloke' campaign was started by me. But why would I do that? I want to win the show on merit. I don't want a tainted victory."

Rick says the only reason Simon criticised his character was because he couldn't fault his performance. "I think the judges felt they had to say something bad about me," he said. "But I can't stop the papers printing stuff about me if they want to. I wish this could have happened another way, but at the end of the day, the public voted me through to the final and that's all that counts."

The final 10 contestants on Pop Idol will be given a song theme each week until they are whittled down to just two.

The show is set to continue until February with one contestant voted out each week, like Big Brother.

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Does anyone know what happens once we get down to the final two? Will it be up to the public to vote, or will the panel of 'experts' make the decision?

Incidentally, I believe the bookies are making Gareth Gates the favourite to win.