Carolynne (left) lost out at the last hurdle

Carolynne lost out after 1.5 million votes were cast in Saturday's final.

Later in the evening, Alex or Alistair will win the top prize of a recording contract and luxury lifestyle.

Alex, 18, from Truro, is favourite to win, with bookmakers Ladbrokes offering odds of 4/11. Alistair, 25, has odds of 2-1.

Carolynne took her defeat in good spirit, saying: "I'm cool. Nothing is going to bring me down tonight."

Alex and Alistair had won last week's public vote, and voted for Carolynne to join them in the final ahead of fellow student Peter Brame.

Carolynne said she was not upset to be voted off

Saturday's final is in two parts, with Alex and Alistair returning for the grand final at 2135BST.

A one-year recording contract with Polydor Records awaits the eventual winner, as well as a 12-month showbiz lifestyle that includes a luxury flat and a sports car.

Last year's winner, David Sneddon, went on to top the charts with his debut single Stop Living The Lie, and enjoyed top 10 success with his album Seven Years - Ten Weeks.

Other students from last year's series, including Sinead Quinn, Lemar Obika and Ainslie Henderson, have also scored top 10 hits in the past 12 months.

The current series of Fame Academy began on 26 July, when about 4.9m viewers watched the two live shows.

Alex is favourite to win the �1m record deal

Since then, viewing figures have risen, despite competition from ITV1's talent show Pop Idol, which is broadcast at the same time.

About 5.8m people tuned in to see the result of last week's show, compared to 6.2m for Pop Idol.

However, about 1.5m people phoned up to cast their vote, and producers are hopeful about ratings prospects for Saturday's final.

Last year's final attracted more than eight million viewers.