Singer Tom Parker, who has died of a brain tumour aged 33, might not have made it past the audition phase when he tried for a place on The X Factor, but he had the last laugh after going on to top the charts as a member of The Wanted.
Beating 1,000 other hopefuls, Parker became part of the boyband in 2009 after Jayne Collins, manager of girlband The Saturdays, set about forming one. Parker described himself as the “cheeky one” of the group, who also comprised singers Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Nathan Sykes and Jay McGuiness. As the oldest and seemingly most confident one, he was seen as their leader.
