Robbie suffers a Cheeky defeat

Romanian twins described as 'the worst act ever' have beaten Robbie Williams in this week's pop chart, it was revealed last night.

Monica and Gabriella Irimia, 19, provoked scathing criticism from pop guru Pete Waterman when they auditioned for the ITV show Popstars: The Rivals in September.

But last night they appeared to have had the last laugh when their debut single, The Cheeky Song - Touch My Bum, reached number two in the charts.

The twins, who call themselves the Cheeky Girls, beat Williams, 28, by two places. He had to settle for fourth spot with Feel, the debut release from his fifth album, Escapology.

Williams, who recently signed an £80million deal with EMI, co-wrote the single.

The twins have their mother, Margaret, to thank for the lyrics of their saucy song which has become a playground hit.

Now the Cheeky Girls have set their sights on a Christmas number one.

It is an ambition they are unlikely to realise, since favourites for the festive number one spot are One True Voice, the band made up of the winning boys from Popstars: The Rivals.

Said Monica: 'It would be a dream come true for us. We've been singing and dancing since we were three and we're so excited that at last we're breaking into showbusiness.'

The twins were raised in Transylvania by their doctor father. They now live in East Sussex with their mother, who emigrated to England nine years ago, and their English stepfather.

The number one chart spot went to Eminem's song Lose Yourself, while Daniel Bedingfield's former number one, If You're Not The One, was in third place.