Mollie King says she was publicly shamed by Sharon Osbourne while auditioning for The X Factor as a teenager.
Now a household name, King was an 18-year old unknown when she performed a shaky rendition of the Etta James classic I Just Wanna Make Love To You for show judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Osbourne in 2005.
But it would be a bruising experience, with the singer – wearing a sparkly gold top and skimpy white shorts – abruptly cut off by Osbourne, who told her: ‘I think you’re dressed totally inappropriately.’
Reflecting on the encounter, King, 38, told The Times: ‘It gave me an example of what the real world can be like.’
The singer would eventually return to the show in 2007 as a member of girl-group Fallen Angelz, with the four-piece singing a version of Avril Lavigne’s Girlfriend and doing enough to make it as far as the second round before facing elimination.
Fortunately, Polydor Records executives were watching, and King was subsequently invited to audition for a new girl group with the aim of rivalling the chart-topping success of Girls Aloud and Sugababes.
Mollie King says she was publicly shamed by Sharon Osbourne while auditioning for The X Factor as a teenager (pictured)
The rest, as they say, is history. Drafted in alongside Rochelle Humes, Frankie Bridge, Una Healy and Vanessa White, the singer released four albums and quickly became a household name with The Saturdays.
‘We had unbelievable experiences and I was able to enjoy them with my four best friends,’ she recalled.
While the group never officially disbanded, their last release came in 2013 and King has since re-established herself as a TV and radio presenter, while raising two children – daughters Annabella and Lilliana, with her fiancé, former cricketer Stuart Broad.
Three months after giving birth to Lilianna, King spoke to the Daily Mail about her family and revealed she had some ‘tricky’ first weeks after bringing the newborn home.
She said: ‘I feel like the first few weeks – it was the same with Annabella – I did find it quite tricky.
‘You’re just really in that sort of survival mode of, you’re up all night, you’re feeding constantly, but now I’m at that stage where I’m really able to sort of enjoy it and take the most of each moment.
‘And I’ve actually found it easy going from one to two rather than going from none to one, because I feel like I’ve got that little bit of experience and a bit more knowledge.
‘I really felt like I knew nothing when I had Annabella.’
Shortly after King gave birth to her second child, Broad took a trip abroad to be a sports commentator for the South African Premier T20 cricket league.
During this time, she relied on her mother and her in-laws to support her while she juggled the demands of parenthood.
King wore a sparkly gold top and skimpy white shorts for show judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Osbourne
The singer was abruptly cut off by a critical Sharon Osbourne, who told her: ‘I think you’re dressed totally inappropriately’
King (centre right) eventually returned to the show in 2007 as a member of girl-group Fallen Angelz, doing enough to make it as far as the second round
Mollie was pictured outside the BBC radio studios on Tuesday wearing a cow-print jacket and jeans
She said: ‘He went to South Africa for five weeks quite soon after she was born, which wasn’t ideal timing, so my amazing mum and mother-in-law really stepped in and helped me out with that.
‘But since he’s been back from South Africa. It has just been so lovely to have that family time while I’m on maternity leave.
‘It’s been nice to sort of feel like the four of us are a little used to it and most of that time. I know how precious the time is.’
She added: ‘I know how quickly it goes by. So yeah, we’ve been really trying to make the most of each day and do fun activities and get out.’
Read the full article here
