A SINGER from Darlington could follow in the footsteps of the likes of Leona Lewis and Alexandra Burke after successfully auditioning for the X Factor.

The popular ITV show returns for its 12th series this Saturday and Katie Coleman of Middleton St George is among the auditionees hoping to impress Simon Cowell and co to win a recording contract.

Katie, 21, made it onto the show after wowing the judges and a crowd of around 5,000 people at her audition in Manchester in July.

Her proud mother Susan said that her audition version of the Ariana Grande hit Break Free brought new judge Rita Ora to tears and prompted Simon Cowell to pronounce that he could not believe she did not already have a record contract.

This footage is expected to be aired this weekend and Katie said it was “very scary” to think that she is at the start of the path that took global superstars One Direction to their dizzy heights of fame.

She said "I was confident in my audition, but really nervous still because it is all a bit of a whirlwind.

"It is very scary to think about reaching the final to be honest, but I am hopeful that I can go all the way."

Miss Coleman, who studied at Hurworth School and Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form in Darlington, was a regular performer in the Darlington and Teesside areas before she moved to London last year to pursue her dream of working in the music industry.

She describes her sound as a “big pop voice with an urban edge” and has been influenced by soulful stars of the past including Etta James and Aretha Franklin, through to contemporary chart toppers Beyonce and Jessie J.

Miss Coleman’s mum Susan, who works at Whinfield Pharmacy in Darlington, said she was “excited, ecstatic and scared” of her daughter’s participation in the programme, saying: “It’s been quite an adventure.”

The North-East has good form when it comes to producing X-Factor finalists, with Saltburn’s James Arthur winning the series in 2012 and Middlesbrough’s Amelia Lily finishing third in the competition the year before.

Two members of the 2011 winners Little Mix, Perrie Edwards and Jade Thirlwall, hail from South Shields and they followed in the footsteps of 2009 winner Joe McElderry who also comes from Tyne and Wear.

The new series of the X Factor kicks off with two episodes at 8pm on both Saturday and Sunday.