Blur's Alex James has become the first contestant to be voted off ITV1's new celebrity reality show Popstar To Operastar. The bass player - one of eight stars taking part in the show which sees pop stars attempting to perform operatic arias - found himself in the bottom two alongside Saturdays star Vanessa White. And the judges - Classic FM presenter Lawrence Llewellyn-Bowen, rock star Meat Loaf, and opera stars Katherine Jenkins and Rolando Villazon - were unable to choose between the two when they had to decide who to send home. After the two opera stars had chosen to save White, Meat Loaf and Bowen opted for James - meaning the final result was decided by the public vote. It was then revealed that James had received the least number of votes. "It's been great - what a blast," he said afterwards. "I'm disappointed but enjoyed every minute of the experience." Earlier in the show James gave a quirky energetic performance of the opera classic Largo al Factotum which earned him a standing ovation from the studio audience. However the judges weren't so sure. "As far as opera singing can be it was totally bad," Villazon said but acknowledged that James had given a "good performance" which the audience enjoyed. Bowen said that he had never envisaged opera "being sung in the style of Dennis The Menace before". Seven celebrities - including Kym Marsh, Bernie Nolan, Jimmy Osmond, Darius Campbell, McFly's Danny Jones and former Shakespear's Sister singer Marcella Detroit - remain in the competition.
