BOW teenager Barclay Beales didn't make it past the "boot camp" stage of the X Factor after his trademark yodelling failed to impress the judges on the ITV show last weekend.

Barclay (18), tried a unique version of Respect by Aretha Franklin (the track earlier sung, with better luck, by Exeter's Shelley Smith) complete with occasional yodelling.

But it didn't go down well with judge Louis Walsh, in charge of the boys this year, who said: "At least it was different. I'm sorry you're going home."

Sharon Osbourne added: "What was that? I have never in my entire career heard yodelling in Respect. It was like a joke."

Afterwards Barclay said that the way the show was edited made him "look stupid".

He said: "I sung three verses and they just showed the chorus. The way they have edited it makes me look stupid. Maybe if they had shown the whole thing I would have come across a bit better."

Gary Barlow added: "It was like someone turning the radio dial onto a different station and then back again."

The former Queen Elizabeth's Community College student thanks all those who supported him, calling the support he is getting as "unreal" and adds that he is now looking to gig around the area.

He went on: "The support I have had since the show was aired has been great and everyone has been really cool about it. I have only had one person say that it was a joke but I have had thousands of other people sending me positive messages.

"I'm going to try and start gigging more because I don't really gig much and also try to find some management. The X Factor has been a great platform for me and it's really raised my profile, so even though I didn't get through it's been a great experience.

"All the support I have had really does mean a lot, that people enjoy what I do and I hope I can keep making people happy."

Keep an eye out for Barclay appearing locally and further afield in the near future.

Some of his tracks are available to download from his website and further information is also available on the site at: http://www.barclaybeales.com">www.barclaybeales.com .

Alan Quick