Matt: I won't blow my money

He explained: "It depends how much I get! I want to treat myself and my family first, but then I want to be sensible with it. I don’t hanker over any flash cars, just a car that works would be a nice start."

However, one thing the Essex-based performer – who beat off stiff competition from fellow finalists Rebecca Ferguson, One Direction and Cher Lloyd - has promised to do is treat his "amazing" mentor Dannii Minogue to a thank you gift.

Matt added to Syco: "She’s been getting me gifts all week, I really need to buy her something to say thank you. She got me a bag of goodies when we first got here and since then she’s bought us little treats from time to time.

"I don’t know what I’m going to get her but it has to be something amazing to repay her and give something back after everything she’s done for me."

The singer also admitted he used to lead the life of a "rebel", but the show "changed his life" for the better.

He said: "Entering 'The X Factor' changed my life. It's saved me, in a way.

"I was a rebel, drifting about having a laugh and a drink with mates. I never went mental but I was stupid."

However Matt reached the height of his problems when he spent a night in jail after being arrested for being drunk and disorderly.

He revealed: "One night I was with someone who smashed something up. In the grand scheme of things it was pathetic. I got nicked for being drunk and disorderly and spent a night in a cell but it was just a joke. We were just stupid idiots."

After failing two college courses, Matt's concerned family persuaded him to make his singing dreams come true and enter 'The X Factor'.

He added to The Sun newspaper: "They wanted to see something happen in my life. They said, 'You can't be bumming around drinking with your mates all the time'. They thought if I was serious about wanting to be a singer I should put some effort in to it."

Meanwhile Matt is way out in front in the race for the UK Christmas number one according to early sales figures.

The singer sold 112,000 copies of his single 'When We Collide' during its first day on sale.

Figures from the Official Charts Company show his nearest challenger is Rihanna who has sold 41,000 copies of her single 'What’s My Name'.

She also had an' X Factor' boost after performing the track in Sunday’s final, dressed in little more than a floral bikini.

Matt’s track, a renamed cover of the Biffy Clyro song 'Many Of Horror', was released as a download within hours of the show finishing. It will not come out on CD until later in the week.

Efforts to derail Matt from the number one look likely to fail. In 2009 anti-'X Factor' campaigners beat McElderry to the festive top spot by championing Rage Against The Machine’s 'Killing In The Name'.

However the leading contender this year, The Trashmen’s 'Surfin’ Bird' is on course to make only number three in the charts after selling 25,000 copies.

And a stunt to get a silent track to number one – a cover of John Cage’s famous sound-free composition '4’33'“ is currently only the 19th biggest seller so far this week.

But a campaign to get Biffy Clyro’s original song into the charts seems to be gathering pace. It is on course to make the top 10 after shifting 15,000 copies.

Fans of the band want the rock trio’s “creativity” to be recognised by getting the track into the charts.

The song reached number 20 when it was first released in January.