Will Young Winner Pop Idol 2002- ITV

The first Pop Idol programme Final, produced two deserved contenders. It was between Gareth Gates and Will Young. The final telephone vote was a world record for British TV at the time, with the number of calls over 8.5 millions. This is an edited version of the show. Introduced by Ant and Dec. The Copyright in this video segment belongs to Talkback THAMES. © Talkback THAMES 2002 now part of Fremantle Media Australia.

[@xljackson]

This was such an epic moment of my childhood!

[@JayTheLane]

Will was by far the better singer. Gareth was genuinely gracious and was happy for Will, this was to his credit.

[@Xaj33]

Will was my winner from the start.He is still performing just ❤ his amazing voice.I can remember watching the final happy Will won.👍So bittersweet Darius behind Will RIP Darius 😢

[@osinachiuwaechia2198]

Yeah I saw as well I miss Darius

[@jakeinator722]

OMG, this is so much better than X Factor. No stupid screaming audiences, no dramatic music. Just normal talent searching. Reality competition shows SUCK now.

[@merlinmediagroup]

Safe to say you either were very young, or not yet born when Will Young won Pop Idol? I can assure you it was no better than the X-Factor - it introduced the very cliches and gimmicks the X-Factor would go on to milk and exploit for 15 years. Reality TV sucked from the get-go we just hadn't become accustomed to its drivel yet.

[@OtakuLogan2017]

This this and this. Reality television needs a great reset

[@daveLin104]

​@OtakuLogan2017 reality TV would be dull as anything without massive manipulation, set ups and fakeness.

[@WeLoveElphie111]

Haha, I remember watching this and being so pissed and upset that Gareth lost. 11 years on and I feel quite stupid about that, Will is so clearly superior in every way :p

[@kevinlongman007]

WeLoveElphie111 Will had a much better voice than Gareth.

[@toadynose89]

I was exactly the same. I was 13 at the time and was madly in love with Gareth, so I was well pissed when Will won. But now Im 31 I definitely think Will was a worthy winner. He had an awesome voice and seemed a really nice lad.

[@faradaycool4058]

Tell me about....I'm still pissed ! (just kidding). I love both of them...even after returning to Singapore

[@maryther1995]

I remember this like it was yesterday 😍😍feel like crying 😢😢 i was about 4yrs and i wanted him to win. Will Young ❤️😍😍😘😘👍🏻 I enjoyed the idols and things back then.. Not now adays. 👎🏻

[@seank135]

As I got older these shows weren’t for me at all but the first pop idol is so nostalgic for me. Brings back memories of sitting round the telly watching it with my parents & grandparents (who I miss terribly)

[@utube4andydent]

Will Young an artist who only gets better with time. 20 years and counting.

[@GLFVIDEO]

Thanks Dorothy for your comments. Will has certainly proved he has the talent to sustain a career in the music industry. As far as Cowell is concerned the less said the better in my opinion.....

[@DorothyShelley]

iwas so pleased WILL won pop idol and stillwith us after 12 years good on yer wi keep up the good work x

[@gezzarandom]

Will was probably thinking, "Please Darius don't drop me." lol, but seriously this was when talent shows actually had talented contestants, its all gone downhill since.

[@ilirkrasniqi6758]

I did followed all Pop Idle Shows, especially Will young. Time has gone soo Quickly!😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥

[@MrsOrhan78]

Wow, really 2002! I remember furiously trying to get through to vote for Will!! Shit, 11 years...where did that time go???

[@alx-bu8sx]

sorry

[@Marfransis]

At the first time i listen his voice... AMAZING WILL!!

[@TabithaBrock]

Amazing...12 years and still going strong!! :) x

[@JusticeForTheDead]

yes, and Will's still going strong. I personally like Gareth's voice, but they both did very well. 12 years, ugh!!! time flies.

[@pinkspiltmilk]

20 now x

[@oscarcat1231]

Hello!

[@vonNaaat]

What I love about this is how gracious Gareth was. Like he wasn't following a script because there was none to follow, he was just a gracious guy 🙏

[@ButterflyFM2]

I had been following Pop idol religiously until at the end of January 2002 I lost my mind and was admitted to a mental hospital and missed the Pop Idol final, thanks for ulpoading so I can watch it now!

[@justthatgamergirl1]

Hope you’re doing better now.

[@ButterflyFM2]

@@justthatgamergirl1 Thanks for your comment, I am on medication and it has helped and I am doing a lot better now

[@justthatgamergirl1]

@@ButterflyFM2 oh wow you replied after a 10 year comment! Best of luck for the future!

[@Natalie-jq3ip]

What a windup u are 🤣😂🤣

[@excell45]

It was brilliant when Will won. I was so chuffed as I wanted him to win so much. Love him!

[@amyclarke41]

yes but oddly i liked him more after he won

[@daisysw3147]

The entire country and Will Young himself was convinced Gareth Gates was winning. It was incredible! Very well deserved.

[@scooscotch1535]

4:26 goosebumps

[@GLFVIDEO]

@PsychosisUnitFM2 It is my pleasure, glad you have at last managed to view the end of the Final.

[@mrpontyboi]

Most voted for tv programme..... 4 months later Channel 4 smashed that with Big Brother 3. Those were the days.

[@mariahampson7511]

A night never to be forgotten . . . WILL YOUNG winning Pop Idol - we were literally jumping for joy! I have been a fan ever since and he has proved his worth time & again. WELL DONE WILL & WELL DONE TO THE GREAT BRITISH PUBLIC FOR GETTING THIS ONE RIGHT!

[@toadynose89]

Fun Fact: Will Young also was the very last person to audition.

[@nicoleenpienaar6111]

And the best !!!

[@kaaznicleah]

will young is a very talented man who writes , sings , acts and plays instruments he is also very genuine and appreciative to his fans i love him he well deserves all the credit for winning i was over the moon when he won it gives me goosebumps xxxx

[@GLFVIDEO]

Quite a lot actually. He has starred in West End Shows, the last was 'Chicago'. He is currently in America touring and performing classical pieces. Far from sitting on his backside and dissapearing into the realms of obscurity which many (including you I think!) believed he would. Like him or loathe him, he does have some talent.......

[@lifeinsync6774]

Wow I never knew. He was in u.s doing Chicago

[@MararbsTV]

Gareth Gates is so famous back then..😀 Congrats Will 👏

[@NPA1001]

No appointment to view television programs like this anymore..

[@GLFVIDEO]

It is my pleasure. Thank You for your comments.

[@johnnyballenatl]

With Will Young's win, a global TV phenomenon was born. Fremantle imported Pop Idol here to the States as American Idol in 2002 and sold it to Fox (and now ABC), Kelly Clarkson won that inaugural season...and the rest, they say, is history!

[@grahamfielder1986]

I'm pleased that you are happy about it!

[@GLFVIDEO]

Hey big Will Young fan, I am so glad I appear to have made your day, thanks for letting me know!

[@LisaMaloney-he7hp]

Hello

[@aligary]

Happy 11th anniversary for tonight Will on your fantastic win in Pop Idol. To think they said you wouldn't last! xx

[@Vixxie89]

@MissRamble Me too! Everyone wanted Gareth to win but I was like NOOOO it's all about the voice, and Will has it! He is a such a star and a genuinely lovely man. Couldn't be any prouder of him and "Echoes" is absolutely stunning. Can;'t believe it's almost 10 years on!!

[@GLFVIDEO]

Thanks for sharing. Time always seems to pass slowly when waiting for a result on a 'live' show, of course it is intentional to build suspense and tension!. GLF

[@cheoo7Lo]

aw thanx a mill for getting back... it must have been on the one before that or sumtin when they were singing maybe..!! hope i find it..!!! thanx for postin this though.. so awesome..!! x x

[@BlimBlam1977]

Thanks for this. I got into Will after World Idol so this was nice to see. I even made a trip over to the UK (from Canada) just to see him :)

[@BossySwan]

Wow, this is a bit of nostalgia!

[@fridayschild72]

still can't watch this moment without blubbing like a baby..WOW 8 yrs :D..it has gone so fast! :0......time flies what ya having fun eh ;)...and boy has it been fun! :)....looking forward to what the next 8 yrs brings us!...bring it on Will!!!!!!!!!! :D

[@GLFVIDEO]

@WithADashOfFairyDust Thanks for your comments. Don't worry too much about your family not owning up! you know you were right and that is all that counts. I'm glad the VT brought back some happy memories for you/ GLF

[@jonathantiernan6816]

Turn Over To ITV2 For The Final Pop Idol Extra Of The Series

[@chanyphilly8266]

Fair play to Gareth, he took it well. Both fantastic arists. I always think of my Mum and Sister when I hear this song.

[@GLFVIDEO]

Excellent, well done Gary!

[@GLFVIDEO]

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for your comments.

[@GLFVIDEO]

I agree, somehow they don't seem to generate the same 'feeling' nowadays - X Factor I mean.

[@normaaitken5346]

I remember one night Will had been voted against.....he said he had got in touch with his mum and dad....He said His dad said, 'Annabell get the shotgun.....' Loved it. He was and is amazing....

[@hitcher1775]

21 years ago ~ does not seem possible ~ Congrats Will.

[@DorothyShelley]

thankyou ALL for voting will in and there was gareth all dolled up in white as if he was already the winner god bless you will long may you be with us x

[@BroniJennings]

2024 anyone? ❤

[@MegaMarie]

2002 was long long time now blimin heck

[@garyjones6880]

What a lovely reminder for me as i had just had my beautiful girl then an all i could do was look into them eyes as i do now an think,shes my evergreen ;)

[@МарианаВълчева-р5е]

Incredible!

[@cook1e70]

Sounded amazing live then and still does now ❤

[@davidbuckley620]

Wow takes me back to such an amazing moment in my life ...words cannot describe

[@Matthew-bu7fg]

Some people will never understand the rivalry (or should that be 'rivalry') in the leadup to this final. It was like a political campaign. Buses emblazoning the names, public slanging matches involving the teams of both singers, controversy about the phone votes... this was peak early-noughties entertainment!

[@dollyevans5212]

2020 and I still think Gareth was the winner 😢

[@DorothyShelley]

thankyou glfvidio for reply i am on here wrinting 2 all my will y oung fans of wich there are many im freinds with a lot of em on here we are in a kind of willyoung club willis so loved and admired it angers me he is not heard on the air as much as the other socaled music they call2 day byebyebx from dorothy shelley x

[@DorothyShelley]

dorothy shelley here thank you GLFVIDIO ive followed wills carreer ever since he won popidle and how wrong was simon cowel sayig he was no good and now is got that part in CABERET iamso pleased for him x

[@valerieandrew6402]

He was the best and Simon Cowell had a dislike for him for some reason but he truly was the best vocalist in this competition and deserved to win .

[@DorothyShelley]

so glad will wonand rightly so ibet simon cowel was livid haha and just lookhow far hes come over 11 years now and still going strong now hes touring again in CABERET AND GETTING GOOD REMARKS ABOUT HIS PART IN IT thanks for this once again x

[@miaferreira172]

Gareth was such a sweetheart on the stage 💙

[@renaschofield71]

Wow brings back so many memories

[@GLFVIDEO]

My pleasure.

[@GLFVIDEO]

Glad you enjoyed it. I have the complete final prog. and nothing as you mention happens in that. Sorry I don't have the clip you are looking for. Good luck finding it. Perhaps someone will help you?

[@rosalindcackett2980]

Remember this like it was yesterday, I voted for both of them lol x

[@cheoo7Lo]

omg great seeing this again..!! thanx for the post.. okay so i remeber on the final episode they showed a clip of will and gareth in a bar or sumtin singin dont let the sun go down on me and gareth was playin the piano... u dont by any chance have that do you, i cant find it anywhere..?? x x

[@grahamfielder1986]

I completely agree with you.

[@jamesbooker89]

What a night that was loved it

[@ivzyrdeleon4931]

WILL YOUNG 1st ever Pop Idol Grand Winner for 2002

[@GLFVIDEO]

@MissRamble Well your wish came true! Look at him now! Personally I am not a big fan, I think he has a very 'shrill' voice, but he has great songwriting abilitities. Thank You for your comments. GLF

[@GLFVIDEO]

@mariabest I am pleased you enjoyed the VT.

[@Pinkismyfavouritecolour]

“This is for Gareth” 😢😢😢😢

[@joannereadman2735]

Love these 2

[@michaelkeates1954]

crazy to think this was 11 years ago, I remember watching this at my friend's house and I was the only one wanting Will to win :-)

[@samito7147]

Almost 20 years ago now...

[@EnglishTeacherLloyd]

@@samito7147 Insane.......

[@elainem7300]

So hilarious that Gareth was at the time sleeping with Katie price lol

[@GLFVIDEO]

@birdsofafeatherfan Well, you got your wish 'cos Will won!. Thanks for sharing this with me, I appreciate your comments. GLF

[@mousehead2000]

Watching pop idol 2003 I completely understand why the same format was rebooted under the name X Factor.

[@GLFVIDEO]

It's my pleasure to provide this VT, I am pleased you enjoyed it. To come over to the UK from Canada just to see Will? You must be a huge fan!

[@GLFVIDEO]

It certainly is! GLF

[@jolitajol]

well done Will

[@DorothyShelley]

iwas over the moon when will won he has such a unuiqe voice and pleased to know hes stil lgoing strong 10 years how wrong was old big head simon cowel ha ha thanks for putting this on x

[@Ashleyharper088]

Pop idol is the mother of bgt and agt

[@luc025]

hahaha i remmeber when this was on i cried when gareth didnt win lol,, i was like 7 at the time

[@aligary]

I'm surprised at that!

[@lizgraham9986]

"your the only girl I need" poor guy! I don't think anyone knew he was gay at this point.

[@scouserguy]

I always thought he was gay, Will is great, but I wanted Gareth to win.

[@yomismo74]

Well, they made him sing things like that in his first album even if it was released months after his coming out. At least he got his vengeance when Friday's child was a success when nobody was expecting that

[@SDGlambert5045]

How cool that Gareth is my age when he and I were 17 that year until he turned 18 in July and I did too in December of that same year Kelly Clarkson won the American version.

[@Onmysheet]

No one cares lol

[@SDGlambert5045]

+Onmysheet What do you mean who cares? It's none of your business so back off because Gareth and I are the same age and we were 17 at that time until he turned 18 in July and I also turned 18 in December of that same year. It doesn't matter because you need to mind your business.

[@felixzadekewing]

loooool

[@aligary]

No pity for Gareth from me. He got all the backing and treatment as if he had won. If Will didn't have the character he has he might have given up. Which was probably what Slimey Cowel hoped for.

[@TheDarrenguyuk]

gareth should od 1

[@flip5]

darren guy sorry no. Will deserved it all the through. Gareth got by on pity voting. Yes he had an ok voice but it was mostly pity. And I think that’s what most of the fans seen through.

[@flip5]

@@TheDarrenguyuk nope. He was a shite singer living off sympathy voting.

[@kaaznicleah]

i ran round the street when will won this i love him hes amazing i was so glad he has been the best deserved winner of any reality show , and why are people going on about being gay hes a singer for god sake grow up being gay doesnt affect his voice !!!!!!!!!

[@Lavendergaljackie2]

This was the best final ever!

[@liamdoran5889]

Here after mentioned on xfm with karl pilkington

[@denaria8719]

RIP Darius Campbell Danesh

[@jonathantiernan6816]

Who Have You Decided As Your Very First Pop Idol Champion 2002

[@schlorrdiamond1248]

I'm glad Will won, but i felt sorry for Gareth! I wish there could've been two winners! but that wouldn't be right lol.

[@sajjadali2008]

Proof that talent wins in the end. i like Gareth but Will so deserved to win.

[@MelissaG31]

Gath gates and will yong

[@tonyt5919]

It's a pity that poor Gareth has that speech impediment, bless him most of the time he struggled to get a word out, but boy could he sing, without as much as a blip,!

[@sajjadali2008]

Still the moment that made me realize that the UK isn't stupid. Talent wins. Beats all the hype and bravado and games by Cowell. He was the better singer, end of. Then after he won favourtism was at play again and then he proved that he could be an artist. Mr Young, i knew it then and i know it know - not a Pop Idol a superstar.

[@Pinkismyfavouritecolour]

I loved both Will and Gareth but wanted Gareth to win. Voted for Gareth on the night numerous times. I cried when Will won 😂

[@Tampo-tiger]

Young: RAW TALENT.

[@GLFVIDEO]

I absoloutely agree with you, although with Cowell it's money, and 'power' - I cannot abide that guy....