Saara Aalto’s lesbian fiancée WASN’T hidden by X Factor bosses despite fans’ outrage over her absence from last night’s show
The Finnish star's sexuality isn't a taboo subject says insider
X FACTOR bosses have been accused of 'homophobia' after they failed to give Saara Aalto's fiancée any airtime on last night's show.
But a show insider has told The Sun online that producers' failure to give her longterm partner Meri Sopanen any airtime wasn't an intentional snub - or homophobic move.
They said: "Saara is totally comfortable with her sexuality and has been very open about it in interviews and on social media but it isn't a defining factor for her in The X Factor.
"As with any other contestant, Saara's sexuality isn’t relevant to her performances which are the main focus in the show."
Fans were upset to see Saara, 29, boarding an EMPTY battle bus on last night's show.
After being told she had secured a place in the final, Saara, Matt Terry and boyband 5 After Midnight were bundled out of the back of Wembley's Fountain Studios where personalised vehicles awaited.
However there was no one on Saara's bus - although today she hit the campaign trail in Finland where she was greeted by hoardes of fans - some of whom might have been 'illegally' voting for her from abroad.
Last night, upset viewers took to Twitter to ask why Saara's personal life had never featured on the show in any of the VTs that come before each performance - but it's not a new question.
One tweeted: "Did anyone else not know Saara had a girlfriend? Why is this never shown?”
Another viewer asked: "Why do they never show Saara with her girlfriend? Do they want to hide that side of her?"
It's not too much of a surprise that viewers haven't been given weekly updates about Saara and Meri.
Of the twelve acts that made it through to the live finals, only a handful have seen their family members feature on the show.
Last week it was the turn of Honey G, whose mum popped up to play MC Hammer hit U Can't Touch This on the piano as she practised at the family home in Harrow.
The Sun revealed that Saara and Meri got together two years ago in exceptional circumstances.
Meri was a fan of Saara, who has enjoyed considerable success in Finland, being the voice of Frozen's Elsa, and representing the country at Eurovision.
Recalling how they met, Saara said: “I was in The Voice of Finland in 2012 and my girlfriend — fiancée now — watched the show, liked me a lot and sent me a fan message through Facebook.
"She wrote, ‘I have never, ever sent a message like this to anybody, but I just had this intuition that I have to send this to you.’
"I was like, ‘That’s so cute’, and thought, ‘What a nice-looking girl.’
“Then, after a year, she actually came to my concert and we met.
“We started talking and realised we just shared the same view of life and everything.”
Their relationship went from strength to strength, with Saara even appointing her as her manager as they are such a good team.
Last week the pair were seen enjoying a low key date night in a McDonalds close to the X Factor hub.
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