There have been some shocking moments in the history of the hit ITV show – and Simon Hopper has trawled through the archives to give you his top 5. What do you think of his selections?

*Do you agree with my picks? Tweet me @easy_odds and we may publish them with your name on the site!

1. X Factor Fix Claims – Katie Waissel, 2010

One of the most controversial figures in the history of the show, Katie was a UK hate figure long before this happened in week 5. First she was put through to the live shows ahead of the popular Gamu Nhengu, then she managed to survive 2 sing-offs in 4 weeks much to the annoyance of the public. But things came to a head when she faced Treyc Cohen in the bottom two and produced this infuriating performance of ‘Don’t Give Up On Me’ by Solomon Burke. Despite literally breaking down on stage, mentor Cheryl Cole refused to cast a vote, effectively sealing Katie’s passage through to week 6. Claims of an X Factor fix were rife in the tabloids, with stories about her past alter egos and family activities flooding the gossip columns. Was it all a set-up? Well, the following week’s live show audience rose by over 1 million – read into that what you will.

2. X Factor Gay Rumours – Danyl Johnson, 2009

There has surely never been a more controversial start to the X Factor finals than in season 6. Pre-show favourite Danyl Johnson had just performed his first song (‘And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going’ by Jennifer Hudson), and faced some surprising criticism from Louis Walsh first up. But then Dannii Minogue stoked the fires of a massive X Factor gay rumour by saying: ‘…if we’re to believe everything we read in the paper, he didn’t need to change the gender reference in it.’ Did Dannii ‘out’ Danyl? There were certainly tabloid rumours about his sexuality before the programme began but the Australian’s live comments certainly went down appalling with both Simon Cowell and the British public.

3. X Factor Fight – Steve Brookstein & Sharon Osbourne, 2004

A classic outburst from season 1 as Sharon Osbourne delivers one of the most scything verbal attacks in reality TV history. Steve Brookstein, who provided easyodds with his exclusive X Factor betting tips for season 7, had just performed his final song. Louis Walsh wasn’t impressed with his performance but nothing could have prepared the stunned audience for what followed from Osbourne:

“He's not fabulous. Everyone knows the way I feel about Steve. For me he's not a superstar. He's been overconfident from day one...he's full of crap and people need to know that…he's even fooled Simon. He's a fake. I don't like people playing the victim…I just think he's full of BS.”

In fairness to Simon Cowell and Steve, they chose not to turn the incident into a full-blown X Factor fight and tried to defuse the incident. If only the judges were still this mean nowadays, hey?

4. X Factor Punch Up Scandal - Emily Nakanda, 2007

But while Sharon’s abuse didn’t get physical, 15 year-old Emily Nakanda certainly did. After just week 2 she was forced to withdraw from the show after a video emerged of her beating up another girl, which involved ‘happy slapping’ and pulling her along the ground by her hair. (See more details and the video clip here). After cruising through the judges’ houses phase with a sensitive performance (see below), it shattered her image and horrified the public. Simon Cowell acted quickly to avoid a PR disaster and told producers that ‘she can't remain on the show’.

5. X Factor Autotune Debate – Various, 2010

Social networks were buzzing with rumours that part of a 2010 X Factor audition was modified using auto-tune technology. The most controversial claims surrounded Gamu Nhengu, who made it all the way to the judges’ houses only to be controversially denied a place in the live finals by Cheryl Cole. The audition in question is shown below – make your own mind up. Although given Louis Walsh said he would have made Jedward X Factor winners had he been able to use auto-tune, it’s open to debate.