By SARA NATHAN
SUNTV Editor
September 02, 2006
BRAVE Tina Dickinson wows X Factor judges tonight — hours after having a heart op.
The pretty 18-year-old IGNORED hospital advice by discharging herself to attend auditions shortly after going under the knife.
Barmaid Tina — who suffers irregular heart rhythms — impressed hard-nosed judges with her rendition of Roberta Flack’s Killing Me Softly.
Simon Cowell broke into cheers and gushed: “It was terrific. Putting you together with that voice just really worked for me.”
Producers have dubbed tonight’s show “Feelgood Factor” due to its triumph over tragedy tales.
Another contestant, 17-year-old Nikita, sings an impressive version of Bonnie Raitt’s Dimming Of The Day — and then reveals how she sang it at her mum’s funeral after she died of cancer.
Simon is visibly touched and puts her through, adding: “It's one of the very rare times someone comes into the room and sings absolutely from the heart and means every word.”
But laughs are still in ready supply as wannabe Glasgow duo Twice As Nice — Karen, 21 and Carmen, 20 — bring the house down with an ear-splitting version of The Lion Sleeps Tonight.
Poor Simon looks like he’s about to jump out of the window as they murder the Tight Fit classic — complete with monkey noises.
He says: “Completely and utterly useless. The worst group we’ve ever had.”
Other highlights include a Kelly Osbourne-style rock chick, a 21-year old mum of two, a fork-lift truck driver called Champagne, a 44-year-old factory worker and the return of last year’s reject Richard Peachy.
