Lucy Spraggan has urged X Factor fans to stop hating on Rylan Clark.

The 23 year old singer has gotten close to the former model since they both won places on The X Factor live shows and is perturbed by some of the negativity he has been attracting since Sunday.

Clark has received death threats and hundreds of hateful comments online, with many viewers branding him ‘fake’ after his tearful reaction to the news that he had made the final 12.

However, despite his histrionics, Lucy insists that Rylan is totally genuine and told Metro:

‘He’s a fantastic guy, genuinely on-screen and off-screen he’s fantastic and the same guy.’

Speaking on This Morning, Clark reiterated her claims, insisting:

Addressing claims that his weeping and wailing on Sunday night’s episode was fake, Clark insisted:

“These guys live with me, they know what I am like off camera and that went on for probably about an hour after I was on the plane.”

Meanwhile, many fans of Lucy’s have been worried about how she will cope with themed weeks on the ITV show.

She shines when performing her own self penned tracks, but any time she’s attempted a cover version in the series so far, it has went down like a lead balloon.

However she is trusting producers to work with her on the issue and added:

‘The producers aren’t going to do things to put us on the spot and make us look bad. They’ve let singer/songwriters like me and people like Ella on the show this year, so it’s a real game changer.’

‘I’m putting my trust in this competition and I think they’re putting their trust in us as well.’

Lucy revealed earlier this morning that producers have promised to change the format of the shows slightly, to better suit the more original contestants, with Tulisa explaining that often the performances will resemble those on Radio 1 live lounge, as artists are permitted to remix known versions of hit songs.

The X Factor live shows start this Saturday night and the supposed song list for the singers has been leaked online. Check it out and tell us if you think Rylan and Lucy can shine in the comments section below…