AN aspiring popstar from Middlewich was told by The X Factor judges on Saturday that she has the potential to be great.

Marie Clare Scott, of Holmes Chapel Road, faced Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Louis Walsh and Dannii Minogue when she sang Don’t Know Why by Nora Jones.

The 18-year-old’s performance was given the thumbs up by all four when it was broadcast to millions on The X Factor’s sister show The Xtra Factor on ITV2.

“It was a bit surreal,” said Marie Clare, who attended St Mary’s Primary School.

“It felt like a dream and as soon as I came off stage I couldn’t remember what happened.

“The audience was blacked out and the judges were in the spotlight.

“It was bizarre seeing Simon Cowell and Cheryl Cole and everyone. It was a privilege just to perform in front of them.”

The young singer was compared to X Factor presenter Holly Willoughby, which became a running joke throughout the show.

“It was basically Holly singing” said Simon during the programme.

Dannii added: “You’ve got a really pure sound to your voice which is really refreshing to hear.”

Marie Clare, whose dream is to be as big as Dusty Springfield or Duffy, is likely to appear on the show again.

Cameras followed her as she went to ‘boot camp’ at the Hammersmith Apollo in London where she had to rise at 6am and perform into the early hours.

She said: “Boot camp was so much hard work. They don’t call it that for nothing.

“But I met lots of nice friends and it’s bizarre seeing them on the show.”

Marie Clare, who did work experience with the Guardian last August, started her X Factor journey in April when she was one of 120 selected out of 15,000 in auditions at Old Trafford.

She added: “I was quite surprised to get through. They were turning away good singers so I was chuffed to bits.”

Before that, she performed at the Kandi Bar in Wheelock Street, The Three Greyhounds in Allostock and at school plays at St Nicholas High School in Northwich.

But it was when Marie Clare sang at her brother Jonathan’s wedding reception at Woodside Golf Club in Cranage that people started to notice her talent.

She told Holly Willoughby: “Singing is my passion and singing is all I want to do with my life.”

Marie Clare’s only criticism predictably came from Simon Cowell who told the singer she looks ‘child like’.

She added: “What you see is what you get with Simon. It’s his job to be truthful.

“But I think he’s a bit smaller in real life. He’s made to look a bit bigger on the telly.”

For another chance to see Marie Clare on The Xtra Factor, tune into ITV2 on Friday at 8pm or Saturday at 12pm.