American Idol (season 7) American Idol (season 7) The seventh season of "American Idol", the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges. David Cook was announced the winner of the competition on May 21, 2008, defeating runner-up David Archuleta by a margin of roughly 12 million votes out of over 97 million, which was at that time the highest recorded vote total ever recorded in the show's history. The split was 56% to 44%. The seventh
The All Ireland Talent Show finalists in series one competed for a first prize of €50,000, which was eventually won by the Mulkerrin Brothers of the Aran Islands. A second series was announced in August 2009. It was scheduled to avoid competition with UK talent show "The X Factor" which airs on competing channels UTV and TV3, and BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing. The series was also extended with the addition of eight heats, a wildcard show and two semi-finals. There was also the addition of The All Ireland Talent Show Backstage, a companion show presented by Aidan Power and Dustin the Turkey. Series 2