TAMSIN Vaughan was sounding pretty down.

She was, after all, just coming to terms with the fact that, after months and months of waiting, she was not going to be the nation's next Pop Idol.

But there is no time in showbusiness to stop and feel sorry for yourself.

When I spoke to her, she was gearing up for a Giorgio Armani party, arranging photo shoots with the likes of men's magazine FHM, and making a bid for a career as a TV presenter.

And to think it all began in the wings of the Oxford Apollo Theatre.

"My mum was a wardrobe mistress at the Apollo and my first memories are being backstage helping her," said Tamsin, who grew up in Pershore.

"I remember watching from the wings, begging to go on stage."

Tamsin began dancing at the age of five and trained at Shakespeare Dance Academy and Harlequin Stage School in Worcester.

After finishing her A-levels at Worcester College of Technology, Tamsin faced a difficult situation.

She could not afford to go to the expensive dance schools in London and she wasn't sure how to make her next move into showbusiness.

So, in 1997, she went back to the Apollo and, out of the blue, auditioned for a part in panto.

"I was working as a waitress in RSVP in Worcester when I got the phone call saying they wanted me as dance captain and understudy to Cinderella," said the 24-year-old.

"I dropped the teapot I was carrying.

"This just seemed like the biggest job ever."

Although all went well with the panto, Tamsin hit a bump in the road afterwards.

"I didn't work for about eight months, I was really starting to lose heart."

When panto rolled round the following year, Tamsin made the do or die decision to try and make a go of it in London, even though she was only 18 and didn't know anyone in the capital.

Tamsin had a lot of toughening up to do.

"There's a lot of people out there who play mind-games with you and that's when you find out who your real friends are and you can turn to them," she said.

"There's also a lot of people who try and take advantage like saying they are agents and they'll represent you for £200.

"Back then, I was getting my cheque book out thinking, 'well, if that's what it takes', but genuine agents never charge like that."

Finding safety in numbers, Tamsin moved into a converted warehouse with a group of fellow performers waiting for a big break.

If that sounds familiar it's because the gang answered an advertisement in The Stage newspaper and became the subject of a docu-soap for Sky called the Warehouse, which is currently being repeated on satellite channel Ftn.

Viewers watched Tamsin go through auditions for West Side Story in 2001, which in turn led to a part in Romeo and Juliet on the West End and then a part in Boy George's musical, Taboo.

With a restored confidence, Tamsin felt ready to start going for lead parts.

But the West End is in trouble and shows have to draft in celebrities to guarantee returns.

So what hook did Tamsin have that would cement her star potential?

Which is where Pop Idol came in.

"Celebrities actually need a vehicle for their careers," she said. "When people know who you are, the world is your oyster."

But after six and half months of waiting and keeping her fingers crossed, the dream came an abrupt end last Saturday. And the cutting criticism from judge Simon Cowell didn't help.

"When he first heard me sing he said I had all this natural talent but even natural talent needed lessons," said Tamsin.

"I had so many lessons after that I hoped he would have noticed, but then he said I was "just above average."

"Later I found that he had just come back from an 18 hour flight from Hawaii and was even more grumpy than usual.

"Going on first, I was going into the lion's den.

"In some ways I'm glad I didn't win it because I wouldn't want to become a 'pop puppet'.

"Being told what to do and having to do things like mime, which really isn't for me.

"But saying that I loved every single minute of the whole the experience and I was gutted when I didn't get through.

"On Sunday I was thinking what am I going to do now?

"I was ringing up the restaurant where I work to say I'd be back.

"But I can't go on waitressing forever.

"That can't be my main skill."

Now Tamsin is in touch with a new agency which wants to get her presenting on TV.

This will do the aspiring star for now.

The question is, how long will it be before her dreams of landing leading roles on theatres in the West End and starring in films are realised?

Like so many things, only time will tell and the rest of us will just have to wait and see what happens.