Jesse McCartney
#4: A chance meeting
One of Bleeding Love's two writers, Jesse McCartney - former member of US boyband Dream Street and voice of Theodore in the film Alvin And The Chipmunks - only met Leona for the first time in April 2008, two years after the song was originally penned. Their chance meeting occurred at a bar in LA after friends tipped him off. McCartney revealed: "It was good to finally meet her. She's lovely... None of her entourage was there so it was quite easy to approach her. We didn't talk much business really. I thought it was best not to seeing as she was chilling... We talked about how crazy it's been for her over the last few weeks. The track opened a lot of doors for me too."
Get more Leona
#5: Childhood sweetheart
Still waiting for that big break, Leona apparently considered giving it all up until her boyfriend - childhood sweetheart Lou Al-Chamaa, an electrician - urged her to audition for The X Factor. "This is all thanks to him. He's just been so supportive," Leona gushed. "I've known him since I was a little girl, we grew up on the same street together".
Mmm... pizza
#6: Stuffed crust or deep pan?
After working in a variety of jobs - including some much-publicised stints as a receptionist and a waitress in Pizza Hut - Leona saved enough to cut a series of demo songs in a studio, including a cover of Minnie Riperton's Lovin' You. Her producer, Marley J. Wills, commented: "She was young and innocent but very much able. Even then she had a very good voice. We started putting tracks together straight away."
#7: Worst Kept Secret
Some of Leona's early recordings made a reappearance when her former management company claimed to be releasing an album of her old demos, with the title Best Kept Secret, hoping to recoup costs involved in her pre-fame training. This release was quickly suppressed.
