TWO North-East men hope to be one step closer to fulfilling a musical dream of becoming pop stars on national television this evening.

David Wilson, from Gateshead, and Stuart Pawley, from Dipton, near Stanley, County Durham, have made it to the last 169 contestants who are fighting it out for five places in a pop group. If they win they hope to hit the big time.

About 3,000 applicants applied for ITV's Popstars programme, where the eventual five finalists will be given a recording contract and an opportunity to become stars.

David lives with his fiancee, Nicki Daley, 21, who has also reached the next stage in the programme, which is to be screened tonight at 5.55pm on ITV.

The pair are part of a cabaret act known as Duo Phonic, and are no strangers to the musical scene.

David said: "We perform a wide range of music that varies from chart ballads to the likes of Meatloaf, so we appeal to a wide age group."

David and Nicki heard about the auditions for the programme, held at Tyne Tees Television studios in Newcastle, through an advert in The Stage magazine.

"I have always been a confident person, so the auditions didn't scare me," said David.

He has loved singing since the age of 12, when he played Oliver Twist in a production of Oliver, at Heworth Green Comprehensive School.

After leaving school he progressed to studying music theatre at Newcastle College.

He said: "The programme has reinforced what I wanted to do. It's nice to be recognised and I feel I can make it, whether it be singing or some other element of theatre."

Stuart, on the other hand, is a relative stranger to singing.

He said: "I've only been singing for about six months.

"In fact, the audition was probably the first time that I performed for serious in front of others," he added.

"Now it's unbelievable. I get people recognising me in the street, it's brilliant."

He said his main influences are artists such as Robbie Williams, Ronan Keating, or Savage Garden, and the programme has opened his eyes towards his musical ability.

The idea for the series came from an Australian programme which created the pop group Bardot, whose debut single went to number one and surpassed platinum status in Australia