Contestants' reaction

Smillie impressed the judges with her Viennese waltz and samba but finished last once viewers had their say.

Brian and Craig MacDonald, both 20 and from Ayr, sang hits by the Bay City Rollers and Barry Manilow, but did not go down well with judge Simon Cowell.

However, guest star Manilow praised the duo's harmonies and "wonderful" sound.

The brothers' performances had been criticised by Cowell as "utterly pointless" and "totally mediocre", although fellow panelists Sharon Osborne and Louis Walsh were more kind.

'Over the moon'

And Manilow offered the pair some advice about coping with rejection.

"There are times when I have wanted to hide my head under the duvet, but you have to remember to hold [it] high, be confident and have the belief in what you are doing," he said.

The brothers were gracious in defeat, telling Cowell he was "great"

Although Walsh offered another act - Eton Road - a record deal live on-air last week, he did not do the same for the MacDonalds.

Craig said they had still "faith" in him to "point us in the right direction", however.

"We're over the moon to have come fourth," Brian added. "It's a respectable position and we're really proud of what we achieved."

But they insisted they would remain focused on music and would not be distracted by attention from female fans.

"We're both single but we're concentrating on our careers now," said Craig. "We're not banning girls from our lives but we need to focus on the job and keep striving towards our goals."

There are now three contestants remaining on ITV1's musical talent show - Ben Mills, Leona Lewis and Raymond Quinn.

'Big red swan'

Meanwhile Smillie, 44, had ranked in third place out of five after the Strictly Come Dancing judges had marked her two routines with partner Matthew Cutler.

Three contestants remain on ITV1's Saturday night show The X Factor

She was described as a "sexy samba sizzler" by choreographer Arlene Phillips, and "like a great big red swan gliding across the water", according to judge Len Goodman.

But more of the viewers' votes went to the other four couples, and the former game show hostess was eliminated from the BBC One programme.

Smillie said she had "absolutely loved" being on the show, and paid tribute to Cutler.

"He's absolutely brilliant - number one in my heart, apart from my husband obviously," she joked.