For no particular reason whatsoever — not that one’s even necessary — The X Factor UK has dumped about 30 minutes of mostly previously unseen One Direction footage from the group’s earliest moments together.
The extended clip comes from the “Judges’ Houses” stage of the talent competition. The highlights include footage of the newly-assembled group rehearsing their audition performance of Natalie Imbruglia’s “Torn,” learning from former host Dermot O’Leary that they’ve made it to the live studio finals, and a totally new performance clip of One Direction covering Kelly Clarkson’s “My Life Would Suck Without You.”
There’s also a plethora of behind-the-scenes clips, including a delightful sequence in which Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, and Niall Horan wait for Louis Tomlinson to return from the emergency room following an infamous run-in with a sea urchin. After rushing to greet Tomlinson with a hug, the boys pick him up and delicately(-ish) haul him back to the house.
On top of all that, the clip also features a whole lot of classic Simon Cowell machinations. In one clip, where he’s lightly grilling the band, he asks if they’ve become friends yet before making a not-so-dry joke about an inevitable falling out. There’s also some unseen deliberations between Cowell and fellow judge Sinitta, during which Cowell raves about the group but “particularly the kid with the curly hair,” likely referring to Styles. “I’ve never heard him sing like that before,” Cowell adds.
“Bye, Justin Bieber,” Sinitta then quips.
From Rolling Stone US
