I AGREE.
wth, Mark was sexy & 10000x more talented than luke.

i can gurentee if mark gets a contract he will outsell luke!!!

Well sorry I am glad it's Wes and Luke....

im glad luke's in

He's such a creeper.

Wes's song is pretty cool!

Yeh it is....:-)

Disappointed but not surprised at Mark's exit.
Happy to see all 12 finalists doing McHappy Day in Sydney last Saturday. In all, $1.9 million was raised from McDonald's around the country, higher than last year's $1.8 million. Kyle also donated $15,000 of his money and Andrew $20,000.
Luke's winner's single sounds better than Wes'.
Voting lines are now open and will close this Sunday at 8.30pm AEDT. The Potbelleez and music couple Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson will perform in the outdoor concert next Sunday night.

Now from tvtonight.com.au and The Melbourne Age, another voting blunder

In its sixth year, Australian Idol has fumbled correct voting information, last night running incorrect numbers on its official website for 25 minutes.
Human error resulted in incorrect phone numbers displayed on the website.
But a TEN spokeswoman insisted the error had not impacted tonight’s results show, which has announced the final two contestants, Wes and Luke, to go head to head at the Sydney Opera House.
“Last night a page including incorrect Australian Idol voting details was posted to the Idol website for a brief period,” she said. “At all times the correct information was displayed on-air.
“Viewers can be assured that the outcome of tonight’s verdict is unaffected by this incident.
“However, we recognise this error would have been confusing to those who visited the website during that brief period, and our website management procedures have been reviewed and tightened to ensure no repetition.”
But Melbourne viewer Anne Macindoe said she found it hard to take Channel TEN’s “search for a superstar” seriously when the station had failed to acknowledge the glitch on its website. Ms Macindoe said her 10-year-old daughter had wanted to cast a vote for Spano but when they checked the numbers on the website she had ended up voting for Carr.
“I can’t see how it won’t affect the result,” she said. “There’s no way that they can accurately judge how many people have been diverted to the wrong people.
Ms Macindoe said she ended up making three extra phone calls to balance out the error and make sure her daughter’s vote had still counted towards Spano’s tally.
A spokesperson from FremantleMedia told TV Tonight it knew exactly how many hits the incorrect web page had during the affected 25 minutes.
“The number of unique users on those pages in terms of the numbers voting was tiny. The SMS number was correct at all times. On air the numbers was correct at all time,” he said.
“We know that number is miniscule in comparison to the number of Idol votes. There is no way even with all of those people voting for one person that the result would have changed. We know how many people looked at the pages, you only have to do the maths on it, and it’s not affecting the result.”
The incorrect numbers affected each of the final 3 contestants.
Reality voting has brought shows unstuck before, most notably incorrectly evicting Bree Amer from the Big Brother house on TEN in 2004.
Wes Carr and Luke D!ckens compete for the 2008 title following the elimination of Mark Spano earlier tonight.

wow i'm so surprised by luke been in the final 2.. i thought mark would get there but wes has to win.

and i really hope mark gets a contract.

AAP reports:

MARK Spano has been voted off Australian Idol after being beaten by Wes Carr and Luke D!ckens.
Spano sang a rendition of the INXS song never Tear Us Apart as a farewell to the show as the last two competitors prepare for the final at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday.
"Wes is the best musician I've ever known and Luke is just a freak of nature and I'm glad to be
beaten by two complete freaks," Spano said after being voted off.
The judges were lavish with their praise for Spano, encouraging him to continue performing.
"It's safe to say you took my breath away with some truly, truly magnificent performances ... You took us to a new level," D!cko said.
Marcia Hines said he brought humour, cheekiness and musicality backstage while Kyle Sandilands urged him to "get your stuff out there ... people want to hear it".
Bondi boy Wes Carr is the overwhelming favourite to win the Network Ten competition next week.
On Monday, he sang a rendition of White Noise after making it through to the final.
Luke D!ckens, the shearer from Young, remains the underdog.

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/stor...5001028,00.html

WES FOR THE WIN!!!!

Another report this time from the Herald Sun website:

WES Carr is set to become the shortest-priced favourite in the history of Australian Idol.
Bondi musician Carr, however, goes into Sunday's final amid controversy over the show's voting procedures.
Carr, listed by Sportsbet at the less than generous price of $1.40, is widely considered a shoe-in to win the competition ahead of NSW shearer Luke D!ckens, who is listed at $6.75.
The pair got through to the final after Melbourne labourer Mark Spano was eliminated tonight.
Channel 10, however, has been forced to assure viewers and contestants that results have not been affected by a 25-minute Idol website error that directed votes to the wrong contestants on Sunday night.
"A page including incorrect Australian Idol voting details was posted to the Idol website for a brief period," a Ten spokesperson said.
"At all times, the correct information was displayed on-air. SMS voting represents the majority of voting. Viewers can be assured that the outcome of tonight's verdict is unaffected by this incident.
"The number of users who viewed the web pages in question was relatively small, and significantly smaller than the gap in voting."
Auditors from accounting firm Ernst and Young were called in to qualify the process. They claimed the number of votes lodged "were so minimal they couldn't have affected the verdict".
Carr, 26, who has dreamt of a career in the music industry since childhood, is taking his "hot favourite" status in his stride.
"Look, I'm not a gambling man, but I suppose it's good to be favourite in such a monster show," Carr said.
"I'm feeling pretty good and am really happy with what I've achieved. When I've been pulling beers, as recently as March this year, I've thought I had a lot to complain about. I'm just so unbelievably grateful because this (Idol) is some of the best fun I've ever had."
Spano, who many thought would get through to the final, believes the Idol 2008 result is a foregone conclusion.
"I felt from the start that Wes would win and that the show would be a race for second place," Spano said."
D!ckens, 26, has been the contestant who has confounded viewers and critics with his progress through the series.
When he auditioned for the show he had little experience performing in front of a crowd.
"I am a bit of a long shot here, aren't I," D!ckens said.
Judge Ian D!ckson is full of praise for the talent discovered on this year's Idol.
He believes a structural re-vamp (changing the format of the Idol Monday show and losing Mark Holden from the judging panel) has worked for the show.
"What we proved this year is we're passionate enough about the show to make tough decisions for the sake of the show," D!ckson said.
D!ckson says the show is much slicker with three judges instead of four, but remains regretful about criticisms he made of axed colleague Holden.
Asked if they've spoken recently, D!ckson says, "No . . . no. It's been a year now. We've not spoken since I made those comments about him. I've tried reaching out but I don't think there's much hope for that relationship, unfortunately."

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...369-661,00.html

GO WESSSSS....I MEAN GO WES CARR!!!! LOL

Lmao, Wes has been favourite from the start. They should have ended the show a few months ago and handed him the recording contract then

Or... it'll be a complete surprise and Luke will win.

Soph should have been in the final two

WES TO WIN

imagine if you did bet on luke from the very start to maybe win this thinggg... you could get a lot lol

lol what were Luke's odds at the start? I know he was one of the outsiders

^^^ this was the earilest i found in this thread

underdog always goes far!!

AFTER recieving the ultimate "let's have a coffee next week" accolade from judge Ian 'D!cko' D!ckson last night, outgoing Australian Idol finalist Mark Spano said he's hopeful about his future in the music industry - sort of.
"He's probably going to offer me two sugars and that's it,'' the singer told Sydney Confidential today.
"I'm just going to approach this with open arms- I may have to work for it and it may just come to me.''
-o said he was so impressed with the 26-year-olds progress on the talent quest compeition he was willing to talk business, and the songwriter said he had enough material to head into the recording studio immediately.
Having been elimated from the Channel Ten series in the midst of a voting scandal, where votes were mistakenly awarded to the wrong contestants after a technical glitch on Sunday night, Spano said the situation was out of his hands.
"I don't reckon it would have made much of a difference and if it did, it's too late now.''
Spano's elimination pushes Sydney singer Wes Carr and country crooner Luke D!ckens through to the Opera House finale this Sunday, which will feature performances from this year's top 12 and yet-to-be-announced surprise acts.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...5012974,00.html

The Herald Sun also reports today that Madam Parker has signed her own publicist, Matthew Dillon Public Relations. Most of Idol's eliminated singers are represented by David Campion from Caplice Management, the report says. Parker will perform Rihanna's hit Don't Stop the Music at the Starry Starry Night gala for the Alannah and Madeline Foundation at Crown Casino this Saturday night, before flying back to Sydney for the Idol finale.

Thanks Johnson

Herald Sun reports today (it's not on its website) that Wes Carr has secretly been living outside the competitors' compound, according to Mark Spano. Mark said Carr ask the other finalists if it was OK if he stayed at the Bondi beach apartment he shared with actor girlfriend Charlotte Gregg. "We all said it was fine, but he took it a little too literally and he never came and saw us," Mark told the paper, adding that Wes was only seen at the shows and appearances.
A FremantleMedia spokesman denied Carr had been given a helping hand, saying contestants had been allowed to stay outside the Idol house since the show began.

And who reckons Delta could be the surprise act in this Sunday's grand final? Lionel Richie was special guest in the 2007 finale and so far The Potbelleez and Shane Nicholson and Kasey Chambers have been confirmed as performers this Sunday. Marge, who went to Delta's Bella Mia performance in California on Monday night US time, said Delta was flying home this week.

Mark will be better off not winning!

I feel sorry for the winners of Idol! It's the most horrible thing to ever happen to them. They just ruin themselves, completely. It's the worst contract ever, and makes you look like such a lame artist.

so YAY! that no one good in the competition is going to win!

Give it to the shi!t one (LUKE) !! LOL

I agree.
with all of this.
There have been no successful winners, which is sad for them i guess.



Winners:
Guy, Casey, Kate, Damien, Natalie.

=fail.

Ah Guy is still around....

Both Guy and Damien are still around and Natalie is releasing her first album of originals soon so she hasn't really been given a chance yet

bring in deltaaaa!

Jessica Mauboy will perform Burn, the second single from her upcoming album, in this Sunday's grand final. Burn will be released on November 29.
Her current hit Running Back is #4 in this week's ARIA singles chart.

They always said it would be at the Opera House. They just didn’t say it would be “in” the Opera House.
Channel Ten will be hoping for fine weather on Sunday with plans for an outdoor Grand Final for Australian Idol.
In the show’s six years it is the first time the show has opted for a “rock concert” finale. Each year the show has included an outdoor “pre-show” concert, but this time two stages will be utilised to decide the winner between Luke D!ckens and Wes Carr.
The steps of the Sydney Opera House will double for tiering that indoor seating usually provides.
But producers will be hoping that rain stays away, making a decision on Sunday morning before initiating a Plan B for wet weather.
A spokesperson told TV Tonight the move to an outdoor finale was a conscious decision.
Inside the Opera House on Sunday is a concert by David Hobson, conducted by Chong Lim, but it is scheduled for 1pm.
In the five previous years the finale has been staged the weather has been kind to Idol.

http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2008/11/outdoo...e-for-idol.html

Check the Bureau of Meteorology website (www.bom.gov.au) for the latest weather forecast.

^ thats crap

that sucks! the point of the finale at the opera house is to actually SING inside the opera house

i think after next year idol needs to go to bed...its simply not doing anything anymore-as in after the show. yes the show is very entertaining as it shows great singers but alot of them dont go anywhere!

so yeh...one more year and thats it

Hmmm... It seems singles have been set to release whether or not one of them wins.

Luke D!ckens is releasing " When We Hear Hallelujah " as a physical single on the 6th of December.
Wes Carr is released "You" as a physical single on the same date.

Strange, maybe they both have record deals even if they don't win...

not long to go.. it's only a 2 hour show.. usually alot longer then that!

Rain fell in Sydney at least twice this afternoon. The latest forecast from the weather bureau for Sydney is for showers, clearing overnight. Cloudy. Strong south to southwest winds, reaching gale force at times in coastal suburbs. Forecast minimum temperature of 14 degrees.

gosh its pouring in sydney tonight

WOW.. i am soooo glad im not there
it's pouring

yeah ditto its not light rain its really heavy you can see it going on the cameras i hope no one gets electricuted

i wish they were doing it inside

it looks like its about to thunderstorm there what would they do if it does would they have to cancel it? because of the lightning and eletrical stuff etc?

i dunno.. im sure they'd have a plan tho

yeah its still pouring though idol has been on for 30 minutes and it has not stopped in that time

the sound stuffed up in Jess's performance

yeah i heard some sparks so maybe the rain is getting into the equipment

^ not goood!

voting lines are about to chose i hope australia made the right choice!!

Go WES!!

yes i want wes to win if luke wins ill be mad !!

Jess' performance was wonderful as was The Potbellez's.
Just checked the weather radar and light rain is still falling in most of Sydney.

^ as u can tell on the tv.. it's pouring!!!