Kathryn Holmquist will stand at the station with the rest of the broken-hearted parents.

Pop Clones - sorry, Pop Stars - has been as compulsive for the viewer as it has been sadomasochistic for the participants. On one level, it is a documentary series about young people who audition for a rock band with dreams of fame and wealth. On another, the programme is an object lesson in successful parenting. You could see from their glowing faces and self-belief that so many of the contestants had behind them loving, supportive parents.

Pop Stars has also been a behavioural experiment in how teenagers handle stress, and an exposé of how parents react when their children's dreams hang on just a phone call or a visit from a judge who has the power to rule their futures.

It was clear that the experience of participating was an emotional roller+coaster ride not just for the contestants, but also for their families, who behind the scenes were keeping their children's self-esteem strong. How difficult that must have been and how extraordinary it was to see one mother, whose son Peter didn't make it, responding with anger and disgust as she slumped on a sofa. The son was philosophical by contrast, comforting his mother by telling her rejection was no big deal.

This was just one of the compelling parenting moments in the programme in which the final six members of the band were revealed. We then learned that the six were actually five. Dropped from the final line-up was Nadine Coyle, who was so "desperate for it", in pop guru Louis Walsh's words, that she lied about her age, claiming to be 18 when she was actually 16.

How horrible it was to see her struggling to cover-up her mistake, attempting to find her passport in her bags and phoning her parents. We saw her father having a quiet word with one of the production team, telling them that he had planned to take them aside before this. The poor man. How desperate he must have been to see his daughter's dream come true - you can hardly blame him.

Being caught out lying is a typical teenage experience, and one that's going on in homes all around the country every day of the week. Parents need to confront lying directly- even so, poor Nadine wasn't let off lightly.

She lived with the consequences of her actions - an important lesson. But the poor child had to go through this exposure in public.

As for the parents - all of them - you could only weep. Two of the families had exactly the same reaction to the news that their child had made the final six. One mother spoke for all when she said tearfully of her beautiful son, "he's the life of the house." She was in bits as she saw him driven away from his family home to a new life of fame - but also of huge psychological demands.

There is no denying the traumatic emotional impact for parents of that moment when they must say goodbye to a child who is embarking on the first steps of adulthood. They know that the child will return to them in a few weeks or months, but will not be the same creature as the one who left home.

I could hardly resist the tears myself when I heard Sinead Sheppard's aunt and grandfather saying "she's our pride and joy. She keeps us going," then waving her off at the station.

Our children keep us going. Their vitality, youth and enthusiasm keep us alive - then one day we have to say goodbye. That inevitable leave-taking is the hardest, cruellest part of parenting.

I have strong reservations about the way in which the young contestants were emotionally manipulated by the programme, even though it was great TV. What parent would want their child to have to go through such exposure in public? I know I wouldn't. I have a feeling that many of the parents in the series probably weren't too happy about it either. But when a child has a dream and is determined to achieve it, all you can do is try to help them keep a sense of perspective.

Having Pop Stars in the news is a chance for all parents to talk to their children about fame. Is being a pop musician really the ultimate in success, or is it an artificial, risky, cruel and tenuous world?

Most adolescents are not beautiful and "talented" enough to become pop stars. There are many other achievements that are more important, like being a decent human being and trying to make the world a better place in small ways. The cult of youth - where having a sexy body and the ability to sing and dance are paramount - is artificial. Most people are way past youth when they reach their greatest achievements, and those achievements may have little to do with fame and money.

I wouldn't want a child of mine having such an unrealistic dream - but there's nothing I can do to stop it, if they do. I have little doubt that at least one of my children - all of whom seem to have inherited the drama gene - probably will go that way. Their father was a "pop star" after all, other family members made careers in the theatre, and their mother trained to be a professional musician and worked in the theatre before becoming a journalist.

So when the time comes, I'll be there standing at the station with the rest of the broken-hearted parents, believing in my children's dreams, waving goodbye and promising to be there should it all fall apart.