'X Factor' contract made me a puppet, says Stacey Solomon

Stacey Solomon has revealed that she felt trapped by her X Factor contract.

The singer, who finished third in the competition in 2009, has spent £100,000 in a legal battle with the show's management company to be released from her contract.

Solomon wanted to sign with Max Clifford after winning I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here, but her management launched a High Court bid for damages. She recently settled the dispute, The Sun reports.

"After The X Factor I became part of a machine," she said. "I felt like a puppet. I was given a contract and I signed it. I'd have signed anything. They could have told me to shave my head and I'd have said: 'Pass me the razor.' I would have done anything because I was just so grateful to be there and to be given an opportunity.

"I didn't realise after that there was nothing I could do - I felt tied in. There were a lot of jobs that I couldn't do. I felt trapped and I had to get out. I was left with a huge legal bill - it's cost me more than you can imagine - but it's worth every penny.

"It's lovely to have money, but it means nothing when you feel trapped somewhere you don't want to be. I feel I've got my life back now. I can look forward to doing the things I want to do, whether it's a gig that earns me a tenner or a million pounds, I can make my own decision on it."

She added she is "really proud" that she found the strength to walk away rather than pretend to be happy.