"Let's rename it No Big Band Week": X Factor viewers left confused by contestants' song choices

• Nile Rodgers to replace Robbie Williams on The X Factor 2018 live shows
• X Factor past winners: where are they now?
• RadioTimes.com newsletter: get the latest TV and entertainment news direct to your inbox

Brendan Murray put in the second performance of week five with a rendition of Say Something by A Great Big World, which saw the young Irish singer on a stage with low lighting and, er, hardly any instruments – and it did not escape viewers' notice...

But Murray wasn't the only one to dodge the theme – teen duo Acacia and Aaliyah chose to pen their own song after landing in the sing-off for a second week, and while their bold vocals and lyrics impressed the judges, Ayda Williams wasn't the only one to note how little they made of their available instrumental accompaniment.

Bella Penfold – who drew criticism from the panel for her song choice – was another to avoid the band while delivering her own take on London Grammar's Strong.

All in all, viewers were left disappointed by the show's failure to deliver on its theme.

But half of the contestants did deliver Big Band classics for fans to get their teeth into, with Anthony Russell, Shan, Danny Tetley and Dalton Harris all wowing with their high octane performances.

Indeed, Harris – who received a lengthy standing ovation from the audience – was praised by Cowell for giving the best performance of the series so far with his showstopping version of Listen by Beyoncé.