The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent, contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. Created by Simon Cowell, the show began in September 2004 and has since aired annually from August/September through to December. The show is produced by FremantleMedia’s Thames and Cowell’s production company SYCOtv. It is broadcast on the ITV network in the United Kingdom and TV3 in Ireland, with spin-off behind-the-scenes show The Xtra Factor screened on ITV2. It is the originator of the international The X Factor franchise. The X Factor was devised as a replacement for the highly successful Pop Idol, which was put on indefinite hiatus after its second series, largely because Cowell, who was a judge on Pop Idol, wished to launch a show to which he owned the television rights. The perceived similarity between the two shows later became the subject of a legal dispute. The “X Factor” of the title refers to the undefinable “something” that makes for star quality.

The original judging panel was Cowell, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. Dannii Minogue joined the panel in series 4, and Cheryl Cole replaced Osbourne in series 5 after her departure. After series 7, Cowell and Cole both left to judge the American version of the show whilst Minogue left the show due to commitments on Australia’s Got Talent. Kelly Rowland, Tulisa Contostavlos and Gary Barlow then joined Walsh on the judging panel for series 8, though Rowland announced she would not return for series 9 and was replaced by Nicole Scherzinger. Osbourne later returned in 2013, replacing Contostavlos. Since 2007, the show has been presented by Dermot O’Leary, who replaced original host Kate Thornton. The show is split into a series of phases, following the contestants from auditions through to the grand finale. In the original televised audition phase of the show, contestants sang in an audition room in front of just the judges. From series 6 onwards, auditionees sing on a stage in front of the judges and a live audience. Successful auditionees go through to “bootcamp” and then to “judges’ houses”, where judges narrow down the acts in their category down to three or four acts to mentor for the live shows, where the public vote for their favourite acts following weekly live performances by the contestants.

A musical talent show, in which contestants showcase their talent and the viewers are the judges, voting through an application during song performances.

NYC professionals trade the stress of the big city for the fun and sun of Fire Island Pines, a town on New York’s Fire Island

If you want to turn up in New York City, the hottest party scene going down is uptown. Welcome to Inwood, the crown jewel at the top of Manhattan. The neighborhood’s hottest salon, House Of Dolls, is where you can get your hair, makeup, and nails done by some of the biggest, loudest, and most diverse voices the city has to offer. VH1 Beauty Bar follows the House Of Dolls staff as they take their day jobs seriously but aren’t afraid to have some fun when the sun goes down. It’s a lovable, dysfunctional family with its fair share of laughs…and drama. As VH1 Beauty Bar dives into the parties, the glam, and the personal lives of colorful characters, the House Of Dolls salon is going to turn up like never before.

Behind the scenes of Leah Remini and her family finding an interest in their local home in Los Angeles.

The continuing chronicles of the lives of Jep and Jessica Robertson and their five children.

Generations have wondered if they could survive being stranded on a desert island. But how would people cope if they had to do it, for real, and with only themselves to rely on? Adventurer Bear Grylls abandons 13 British men on a remote, uninhabited Pacific island for a month. They will be completely alone, filming themselves, and with only the clothes they’re wearing and some basic tools. The island may look like paradise but behind the beaches it can be hell on earth. When stripped of all the luxuries and conveniences of 21st-century living, does modern British man still have the spirit and resources to survive?

Zak Bagans is fulfilling a lifelong dream of opening a museum in downtown Las Vegas, full of the haunted, cursed objects he has been collecting through the years. Each episode features haunted, iconic items and their owners. They share stories of how these objects have terrorized them and, in some cases, even killed people. Bagans interviews the owners and works with them to get to the root of their “attachment,” so they can free themselves…or at least escape harm from these “deadly possessions.”

Follow Viewers get unprecedented access to the more than 500 agents of Texas Parks and Wildlife wardens who embark on dangerous missions to apprehend those who commit crimes against nature. The series captures the more than 60,000 arrests each year made by the wardens as they execute undercover stings, work on ongoing investigations and protect their territories.

Port Protection is home to the few who have left behind normal society and chosen a different life in a remote Alaskan community, where survival of the individuals and community cannot sustain without the other. The stakes are high. The land is rugged and unforgiving and the seas which surround Port Protection are cold and merciless. With risk comes a reward more profound than mere survival: a world of beauty and freedom with the security of community and without the constraints of bureaucracy. In Port Protection there are no clear roads to survival, inhabitants must carve one themselves.

The series steps inside the champagne fuelled lives of Ampika Pickston, Dawn Ward, Lauren Simon, Leanne Brown, Magali Gorré and Tanya Bardsley. Throughout the series we’ll get to know these amazing characters and their intertwining lives. In the extreme world of Cheshire’s rich and famous residents, life moves fast and each day has its dramas, ensuring every episode will be action packed and entertaining. All with the gorgeous backdrop of the lavish homes and the exclusive locations that these women live in. The Housewives’ wealth and connections also mean that through them, you’ll get unique access to the elite events and fabulous social occasions that punctuate the Housewives’ extraordinary lives.

These new little ladies turn it up wherever they go, especially with club promoter Emily Fernandez leading the charge with identical twins, Andrea and Amanda Salinas, Bri Barlup, Ashley “Minnie” Ross and Tiffany “Monie” Cashette. The drama heats up with these friends as catfights erupt among their feisty personalities and power hierarchies. Like many friends, they deal with problems with their parents, fights over men and one little lady even has a baby on the way. When it comes down to it, this clique is not afraid to get into it with each other, but together they face the daily challenges that come with being a little person while proving they are the true queens of Atlanta.