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Eleven contestants have been groomed for the new series looking to emulate the success of former Coronation Street actor Richard Fleeshman, who won it last year.

The secret to the 17-year-old's triumph was a mixture of acceptable vocal talent along with having a popular on-screen personna and prominent storyline in his soap.

I'm fairly certain it'll be the same formula for this year's winner and that's why I got excited when I first browsed over the prices a few weeks ago and saw Alan Fletcher, aka Dr. Karl Kennedy from Neighbours, at around 10/1 with the bookies.

Immediately I knew he would be my tip because that price was just too big for the Aussie, who has a considerable cult following around Britain, especially among the university circuit where he often performs live on tour with his band Waiting Room.

His character's love triangle in Ramsay Street with Susan and Izzy may have done him no favours in terms of the female viewers but deep down everybody loves the doctor and we're delighted to see him finally get back with his ex-wife in one of the storylines of the year.

However before you get too excited about the prospect of making a lot of money on the Doc, I have to say that my heart sunk when I saw his odds had been slashed to a best of 7/4 with Stan James as I started to write this preview.

It suddenly makes the bet much less appealing, but given that I'd made him shorter still than 7/4 he still has to go in our staking plan as I'm convinced he'll come out on top.

He knows how to perform live and being perhaps the most recognisable face on the show, it's hard to see how he won't win, especially if somewhere down the line he's able to sing 'River in the Soul' - a favourite for all Neighbours viewers.

But we also need to look for some value and who better fit that bill than Coronation Street's Jane Danson who plays the troublesome Leanne Battersby.

Her character despicably had an affair with Danny Baldwin while she was supposed to be going out with his son in one of the Street's more shocking incidents of 2006. Although technically it's serious foul play in anyone's book, she is one of those likeable bad girls from both male and female perspectives.

And in real life Jane is a very popular actress - in 2003 she pretended to be Madonna in a Stars in Your Eyes special and managed to win the show by beating off competition such as Julie Goodyear, Ron Atkinson (who was a quite brilliant Frank Sinatra), Rhona Cameron and Tony Blackburn.

So who says she can't win over the public again? At 9/1 with Bet Direct we still think she's certainly decent value.

Meanwhile Antony Cotton, who plays Corrie's gay knicker-stitcher Sean Tully, is this series' second favourite at 5/1 with Coral and it's not hard to see why.

He is one of soapland's most popular characters and in 2005 won the Most Popular Newcomer category at the National Television Awards.

As well as holding down one of the leading roles in Wetherfield, Antony can sometimes be found wooing female TV audiences on daytime programmes such as Loose Women, cementing himself as one of their most likeable personalities.

There is no doubt Antony will win over a fair share of the voting public but having unfortunately witnessed him 'perform' Let Me Entertain You live in Manchester's Press Club, I can say he must brush up on his ropey vocals.

However he'll give it his best in high-energy performances, and similar to Ray in X-Factor, the public won't be too concerned if he doesn't have the natural singing talent of the others.

Meanwhile Coronation Street's final representative Tupele Dorgu, who is as big as 14/1 with Stan James, can sing to a relatively higher standard than her rivals as her sporadic experiences in the West End performing in such musicals as Mamma Mia will give her a noteable edge over the rest.

Tupele regularly performs at charity events and has also appeared on Stars In Their Eyes as Beyonce, although she didn't win.

The downside is that her on-screen character, Kelly Crabtree, is a feisty floozie, with long legs, short skirts and a big mouth.

Gemma Atkinson, from my hometown of Bury (although Gemma claims she's a Manchester girl to make herself look less of a local), plays Lisa Hunter in Hollyoaks In The City which is an unpopular spin-off from the daily Channel Four soap.

As a model who frequently appears in male magazines, it's doubtful if she'll receive much support from female viewers and 16/1 is probably a fair price.

Hollyoaks In The City has another contestant in Leon Lopez whose on-screen character is the beefy scouser 'Tank Top'.

Having scanned numerous message boards about the show along with carrying out some research amongst friends and family, there are two different types of reaction in regards to Leon.

It's either, "Ooh, he's dead sexy," or "Who is he?". Understandably he's 18/1 (but cut from 33s) having been a late replacement for Emmerdale's Ben Freeman who pulled out of the show due to personal reasons.

This all means the Yorkshire soap now has three singers in the contest instead of four.

Firstly there's Hayley Tamaddon who plays the loveable Delilah Dingle, and she is 8/1 with Bet Direct and is third favourite with most bookmakers.

Although the 29-year-old won an episode of Stars in Their Eyes as Lulu last year and also has singing experience from playing lead roles in Grease and Fame The Musical, there is one key reason why it would be unwise to back her.

Five years ago she created a hole in her vocal cords because she sang too much and faced the prospect of never performing in this capacity again.

Despite having recovered now, Hayley has recently revealed that she's fearing her voice will give way during the show.

She said: "There's every chance it could just go. I'm bricking it as it is, but this makes it even worse. The nerves are ridiculous."

Verity Rushworth, who has played Donna Windsor-Dingle for the past nine years, is the second act from Emmerdale and can be backed at 11/1 with Paddy Power.

The 21-year-old actress and pin-up girl has been trained to perform in musicals and did appear on Celebrity Stars in Their Eyes as Rachel Stevens although she didn't win.

Her recent storyline has made her one of the soap's more prominent characters and her chances can't be written off.

David Beckham look-a-like Matthew Wolfenden is new on the soap scene having recently landed the role of David Metcalfe in Emmerdale and is a long shot at 18/1 with totesport .

His good looks could put him in with an outside chance and he also has musical expertise to call upon having starred in a 2003 production of Saturday Night Fever.

In a recent interview David has claimed Ben Folds is at the top of his personal album chart which proves he has a decent taste in music while he would also prefer to lend himself to rocky stuff during the show.

It could mean he's a bit of a Ben from X-Factor and could very easily go a lot further than the 18/1 suggests.

Indeed Inside Soap magazine have drawn up some fictional odds on how they see the show going and make Matthew their 2/1 hot favourite.

Meanwhile Mark Furze, who plays Eric "Ric" Dalby in Home And Away, is in a similar bracket to David and is available 14/1 with Paddy Power.

The second Aussie on the programme says his prefered style is heavy metal but admits he'll "try and throw in a bit of everything". Mark is currently involved in two bands - a heavy metal 80's band in which he plays guitar while the other is a punk band. But while this style isn't what you associate with TV talent shows, it could win him support from the younger audience.

Perhaps more importantly Mark appeared in Australia's version of Just The Two Of Us in 2006, and although he didn't win the show, he lasted all the way to the ninth week of ten after some impressive performances with Rachael Beck.

Although less people watch his soap, he's been around slightly longer so perhaps can't be written off as a complete unknown.

Finally we come to former Eastenders actress Elaine Lordan who used to play Lynne Hobbs.

Elaine lasted just one day in the 2005 series of 'I'm a Z-List Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here' having been forced to quit on medical advice. Since then she's endured a terrible time - her baby son died the following December just one year after being born with a defective diaphragm while she's also had to cope with her mother committing suicide.

As far as Elaine's chances in Soapstar Superstar go, her only hope is the sympathy vote - but this can be a potentially powerful weapon.

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By Bettingzone.co.uk
Used with permission.

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A GUARANTEED PROFIT ON BRISTOL ROVERS v HEREFORD

The FA Cup third round kicks off on Friday evening when Bristol Rovers take on Hereford at 7:45pm and we can guarantee you a profit on the match, whatever the result.

We must point out that if you want to take this bet, you should do it now - don't delay! - because we expect the odds to change before kick-off which means the figures here will be invalidated.

You won't be able to do this if you already have accounts with one or more of the bookies we are using for this bet but if that is the case, mail us and let us know which accounts you have and we'll send you an alternative bet.

We're going to lay out a total of £135.00 on the match and we will collect £165.10 plus a free £50 bet if it's a draw. If either team win we will get all of our money back plus a free £50 bet.

Here's how it's done. Just follow these simple instructions.

1. Open accounts with Premier Bet and Extrabet and Victor Chandler. This shouldn't take you any longer than ten minutes.

2. Make the following deposits into your new accounts. Deposit £45.50 into your new Premier Bet account. Deposit £25.00 into your new Extrabet account. Deposit £64.50 into your new Victor Chandler account.

3. Now make the following bets.

Place £45.50 on the draw at 3.30 (16/7) with Premier Bet

Place £25.00 on Hereford to win at 11/5 with Extrabet.

Place £64.50 on Bristol Rovers to win at 11/10 with Victor Chandler.

You have temporarily laid out a total of £135.00. I stress, temporarily... Now sit back, crack a beer open and enjoy the match.

4. Here's what happens at the end of the game.

If it's a draw, you will collect £165.10 from Premier Bet. This money can be withdrawn immediately.

Premier Bet pay a bonus if your first bet is a winner, tiered according to the odds - 15% in this case. So if it's a draw, you will collect the following:

£104.00 winnings, plus a 15% bonus of £15.60 plus your £45.50 stake back which equals £165.10.

If Hereford win, you will collect £135.00 from Extrabet. This money can be withdrawn immediately.

Extrabet also pay a bonus on your first bet if it's a winner. What they do is match your first bet up to £25.00 so if it's a draw, you will collect the following:

£55.00 winnings, plus £55.00 winnings from your free matched bet plus your £25.00 stake back which equals £135.00.

If Bristol Rovers win you will collect £135.45 from Victor Chandler.

Victor Chandler will then credit your new account with a free £50.00 bet, whatever the result of the match.

5. This means that the worst case scenario on the Bristol Rovers v Hereford match is no draw and you break even and get a free £50.00 bet. But if it is a draw you make £30.10 profit plus a free £50.00 bet.

6. It is absolutely vital that you click on the links on this page to open the accounts with the three bookies or you may not qualify for the bonuses.

Also, before you place your bets, you should check that the odds haven't changed. If they have, the figures here will no longer be valid.

Also, please note that the bonuses and free bets are not always paid immediately and you may have to wait until Monday before they hit your accounts.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions at all about this bet and we will come straight back to you.

Please note that the free bets and bonuses are valid for new customers only so if you already have an account with one or more of the bookies we are using, you won't be able to do this. If that is the case,contact us and we'll mail you an alternative bet using different bookies.

This method of betting was used very successfully during the World Cup and you can read all about how it was done right here.

It's understandable that some people will not believe that it is possible to do this. "What's the catch?" I hear you asking. My answer to that question is that we have been publishing arbitrage bets for three seasons now and literally hundreds of people have profited from following the advice on these pages.

Just enjoy the profit and stay posted for many more of these throughout the season.

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