X Factor hopeful Ariel Burdett 'dead at 38' - 11 years after giving show one of its most memorable auditions
26 November 2019, 10:55 | Updated: 26 November 2019, 11:04
It’s been reported that former X Factor contestant Ariel Burdett has died at the age of 38.
She had one of the most iconic auditions on The X Factor ever, but Ariel Burdett’s friends have confirmed the TV hopeful has died at the age of just 38.
According to the Daily Star, the singer - who appeared on the show in 2008 - passed away earlier this month, with the cause yet to be revealed.
Her real name is Amy but she went by ‘Arabella Starchild’ after her audition.
A pal of the hopeful posted on Facebook: "It is with great sadness that I post this, as I have only just found out myself.
"A some time member of the moot, Amy Burdett aka Arabella Starchild passed to the Summerlands earlier this month."
Ariel became a legendary X Factor contestant when she ripped her audition label off and threw it on the floor, saying she was a "human being, not a number".
With dreadlocks and dark eyeliner, the singer told judges at the time - Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue, Cheryl and Louis Walsh - she was a “holistic vocal coach” and her song was an "academic construction".
She also came to blows with with Cheryl, 36, when she called her “stupid” after she got four nos.
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Cheryl later told Ariel, who was 26 at the time, she was "scary", adding: "By the way you walked over to me I thought we were gonna have a scrap".
Posted by Arabella Starchild on Thursday, 16 April 2015
The dramatic audition came to an end, when Ariel told the judging panel to “shove a bit of metal right up their a**”, before she was escorted out of the studio by a security guard.
Twitter users have been quick to share their tributes for Ariel, as one wrote: "Really sad to hear about Ariel Burdett aka the Holistic Vocal Coach passing away.
"She brought so much joy to me and so many people, and will be remembered with absolute love by so many of us."
Another to the aspiring singer read: “Ariel Burdett is gone. What a loss,” while a third said: “I can't believe that she died... rest in peace, Ariel Burdett.”
