Have you got the financial X-Factor?

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All are flying high: the young songstress and boy band making it big second time around are each up for four Brit Awards on Wednesday night.

Day-Lewis and Christie are leading contenders when the Oscars are handed out in Hollywood on Sunday for their acclaimed portrayals of an oil prospector in "There Will Be Blood" and an Alzheimer's sufferer in "Away From Her" respectively.

And in a small way, you can join in.

While they might not earn film star rewards, a number of quirky schemes have recently made their debut through which investors can try to tap into others' achievements.

It is an area that is growing in popularity and has been boosted by stock market volatility, as investors look to shield their portfolios from further falls.

"Generally, 20 years ago people would typically invest in cash, shares and bonds - and that was all they used to do," says Mark Worrall, managing director of independent wealth manager Route Group.

"Now, you would think it unusual if people didn't have property in some shape or form in their portfolio and, going forward, we see a number of other investment areas: people are looking at wine, art, film.

"There's a whole plethora of alternative investments that just wasn't there a while ago and these tend to fare better at times of downturn or credit crunch."

The appeal of buying stakes in more unusual assets in choppy markets is not difficult to see: diversification is key to reducing risk.

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