PEOPLE in Swindon are getting behind their new superstar as Jahmene Douglas prepares for the X Factor final.

Former Asda colleagues and New College students have been jumping for joy after the 21-year-old made it through the semi-finals on Sunday evening.

The singing sensation will be heading back to Swindon on Wednesday for a whistle-stop tour which will see him visiting the Asda store at the Orbital Retail Park in the morning, before heading to Gorse Hill Community Centre at 2.30pm and then Wharf Green in the evening for the town centre light switch-on.

Jahmene will be joined by his mentor and X Factor judge Nicole Scherzinger as he visits his friends and family before playing an intimate gig and switching on the town’s Christmas lights.

Richard Henry, manager of the North Swindon Asda-Walmart store, said everyone at the store had been voting for the former employee and they were thrilled to see him make the final.

He said: “It is fantastic news that he has made it through to the final.

“Every Saturday we get the team together at 8pm to watch the show and make sure that people vote for him.

“A lot of the employees are saying we used to work with a superstar, because that is what he is now.

“I went to Asda House last week to see him, and he was amazing, he was really confident and his singing was unbelievable.”

Fiona Simpson, an enrichment co-ordinator at New College, spotted Jahmene when she was organising the New College Has Talent competition in 2010 and said she was jumping around the room when he made it to the final.

She said: “It is always hard to believe when you see how far Jahmene has come.

“I would really love to have Jahmene coming back to the college when he comes home because there are a lot of people supporting him here.

“For the final he should just go all out and enjoy himself, he has done so well to get to this stage, and everyone in Swindon is so proud of him.”

As well as switching on the lights, Jahmene will be performing for the thousands of fans who are expected to head to Wharf Green from 5pm.

Simon Jackson, chief executive of inSwindon, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for Swindon to show their support for Jahmene and all he has achieved so far.

“We are thrilled to announce he will be performing on the night too.

“Can we encourage all those attending the event to allow additional time for travel and parking due to the volume of numbers and use public transport as much as possible.”

Head down to the Christmas Lights switch-on on Wednesday evening at Wharf Green and look out for our Swindon Advertiser Promotions Team, who will be giving away FREE Jahmene posters from 5pm, while stocks last.

WIN VIP TICKETS TO LIGHTS SWITCH-ON

We are offering 10 lucky readers the chance to win access to the VIP area at the Christmas lights switch-on in Swindon on Wednesday.  

The VIP passes up for grabs entitles you to be in a specially cordoned section at the front of the stage with the best view. Plus, each winner will have the opportunity to be part of X Factor’s filming which will be aired on Saturday night. The VIP guests will be asked to take part in filming with Jahmene after the event when he walks down the red carpet.
All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning is answer the following question:

  • Which supermarket did Jahmene work for?
  • Enter by phone: Simply call 09013600956 and leave your answer, contact details and date of birth when prompted. 
  • Enter by text: Send your text to 80360 starting with JAHMENEVIP leave a space, followed by your answer, name, date of birth and contact details.
  • Calls cost no more than £1.02 per call from a BT landline. Calls from mobiles and some other networks may cost more. Texts cost £1 plus your normal operator text charge.  Telephone and text voting lines open today and close at midnight tonight, winners will be notified tomorrow. For full terms visit www.newsquest.co.uk/terms. Service provided by Newsquest Media Group. Usual Newsquest rules apply. You must be 16 or above to enter the competition.