Supporters in Halstead bet £9000 on Matt Cardle to win the X Factor final within hours of him securing his place.

Over £50,000 was bet on the painter and decorator across mid north Essex within 24 hours of the semi final results last week.

And the 27-year-old from Little Maplestead is currently the bookies favourite to win the contest with odds of 10-11 by Betfair.

Betfair spokesman Alex Bake said: “Matt is odds-on favourite to win that life changing record contract and local support could well see him over the line come Sunday’s result.

“We’ve seen an unprecedented number of bets backing him to win come from his home region and these people are likely to be the ones who pick up the phone and vote for him this weekend.”