X Factor star Sophie Habibis returned to her roots last week to give a show stopping performance at her old school.

The 20-year-old from Tufnell Park surprised pupils at Acland Burghley on Friday during their end of term assembly and belted out Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream, Amy Winehouse’s Valerie, You Got the Love by The Source and Candi Staton before finishing with a festive rendition of Winter Wonderland.

Sophie told the Gazette how excited she was to be back at her old school in Burghley Road, Tufnell Park – especially as she had never sang there as a pupil.

She said: “The only performances I used to do here were dance, so to come back and sing is great. Only a few teachers knew I could sing.

“I was shy about it. It would even be hard for my friends to get me to sing just because I didn’t understand what the fuss was about.”

Sophie continued: “I spent a lot of my life here making friendships and there are old teachers that I get along with and still come in to see to this day. I have a lot of fond memories here, all my best friends went to this school and I just had such a great time here. It’s filled with a lot of love and laughter so it’s always nice coming back to that.

“You should never forget where you came from and the people that you met along the way.”

Since becoming the seventh act to leave the live finals, Sophie has been busy gigging and recording her own music in the studio.

Of her time on the X Factor, she said: “They were the best and hardest months of my life. It’s such an experience – like a whole other world that you’re living in and everything is just incredible, and you have to count yourself lucky that you’re in the position and being able to do all those things.”

Sophie said her highlights were making so many friends in the X Factor house, the buzz of getting ready for performances and her time with mentor Kelly Rowland. “She was amazing – she has so much passion for everything and you bounce off her,” she said.

Looking to the future, Sophie added: “I’d like to think the X Factor gave me the platform to become a better artist. I want to be making my own music and making my own albums – not just in Tufnell Park, but across the whole of the UK and America – that’s the dream.”