X Factor 2011 (UK show)

[Abbie]

Yay stacey would be a great idea!

[Perdita]

Robbie Williams is reportedly being lined up to replace Simon Cowell on The X Factor.

Producers are said to be looking for a new "top dog" to sit on the judging panel should Cowell decide to step down and focus entirely on the US version of the show, which launches later this year.

An insider told the Daily Star: "Robbie is a huge name so would naturally be a massive ratings hit. Not only that, he is also straight-talking and comical.

"We all understand that right now America is where Simon's focus has to be. There aren't many people that can fill his shoes, but Robbie just might be able to do it."

The singer is touring with Take That until July, meaning he could miss some auditions, but would be free for the Judges' Houses stage and the live shows. Bosses are also said to be considering his bandmate Gary Barlow for the role.

DS

[Perdita]

The X Factor will hold auditions in Liverpool for the first time this year.

The decision was made after bosses were impressed by the acts who auditioned for Britain's Got Talent in the city last month, The Sun reports.

"Liverpool's talent was amazing," executive producer Richard Holloway said.

An insider added: "It would be great to find the next Beatles or Cilla Black."

Rebecca Ferguson, runner-up on last year's series, also hails from the city.

The paper claims that the changes are part of a bigger revamp for the show. The auditions process will apparently begin earlier in the spring - in the hope of keeping Simon Cowell on the judging panel.

DS

[tammyy2j]

This year's series of The X Factor will not hold auditions in Ireland, it has been revealed.

The Sun reports that try-outs for the upcoming run of the ITV reality show will take place in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, Cardiff and - for the first time - Liverpool.

An X Factor spokesperson confirmed: "We are not going to Ireland this year."

Meanwhile, a source added: "There are only so many places we can go for auditions. We went to Dublin last year but we haven't been to Liverpool so we thought we should do it this year.

"Obviously this is a blow to the Irish contestants but it's only a short hop across the Irish Sea to Liverpool."

[Perdita]

Simon Cowell and ITV are reportedly warring over the next UK series of The X Factor.

According to The Mail On Sunday, the 51-year-old music mogul is refusing to confirm whether he will return to the X Factor judging panel this year after ITV bosses rejected his suggestion to take the show off the air until 2012.

The publication claims that Cowell originally proposed an X Factor "gap year" so that he could concentrate on launching a greatly-anticipated US edition of the show, arguing that the break would revitalise the eighth UK series following the numerous controversies of the 2010 competition.

However, chiefs at the channel are allegedly refusing to sacrifice the highly profitable programme, having already factored advertising and phone-line income into its financial projections.

A source explained: "Simon wanted to give The X Factor a year off, but ITV were adamant it must be on because it is crucial to their finances. Not having X Factor would be devastating to ITV’s income but also its audience share.

"ITV needs to demonstrate that it is still a viable market player. The two shows that deliver audiences on the scale they need are both Simon Cowell’s – The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent.

"ITV needs Simon Cowell, even though they hate to admit it. The shows are built around him. Without Cowell they are just talent shows."

30-second advertising spots in the live X Factor final last year sold for £250,000, helping ITV rake in £12 million in revenue from the last weekend of the show alone. Cowell's compromise of having the show return in January 2012 is thought to have been turned down as it would skip the lucrative Christmas season.

It was reported this week that none of the show's judging panel have signed up for the next series, even though auditions begin in a matter of weeks.

Cowell's hesitance is also thought to be retaliation for ITV's decision to pass on a new Top Of The Pops-style format from his production company Syco.

An ITV spokesperson confirmed: "We have a great relationship with Simon Cowell but we haven’t commissioned any new shows with Syco and we’re not working on any plans at the moment."

They added: "We are excited about this year’s X Factor and full details of the show will be announced in due course."


DS

[Perdita]

Simon Cowell will reportedly offer both Louis Walsh and Dannii Minogue £1.25m deals to remain as judges on The X Factor.

The Sunday Mirror reports that Cowell believes that the pair are the "lynchpins" of the UK show and wants them to remain as he launches the talent competition in the US.

The Syco boss is apparently keen to ensure that the show doesn't struggle if Cheryl Cole also joins the US version. However, the report claims that they will both still be involved in the UK edition.

"There's no way they'll go off and forget about the UK show," a source said. "Simon and Cheryl will be *involved in some way during the UK series."

The new contracts, which each include an eight per cent pay rise on their £1.1m salary from 2010, are expected to be signed "within weeks" of filming the show's auditions in May.

Cowell recently insisted that he isn't quitting the UK series.


DS

[tammyy2j]

Georgie Thompson is reportedly being lined up to become the new host of The Xtra Factor.

The Sky Sports presenter, who is currently dating Declan Donnelly, will allegedly take over the role from Konnie Huq, who has fronted the ITV2 spinoff for one series.

Thompson is said to have narrowly missed out on the role last year, but has now been handed the job by Cowell because viewers didn't warm to Huq's presenting style, the News of the World reports.

A source said: "The Xtra Factor job would be great for Georgie. She'll be fantastic."

Her boyfriend Donnelly has apparently formed a close bond with Cowell due to his work on Britain's Got Talent.

[alan45]

FLAMBOYANT Boy George wants a spot on The X Factor's judging panel - but only if he gets a huge clothing budget.
The 80s singer has said that his experience and personality would make a great addition to the ITV1 hit.

But he warned that the show's other mentors might not be able to handle him or his diva demands.

The 49-year-old, real name George O'Dowd, said in a TV interview: "There was a rumour last year about me doing X Factor but I don't know if they would want me.

"I would be great, but I'm not sure if they could handle me."

The Karma Chameleon singer added: "I'd do it, but it depends how much they would pay me and if I could have Cheryl [Cole's] wardrobe budget."

The Culture Club star, who was released from jail in 2009 after serving four months of a 15 month sentence for assaulting and falsely imprisoning a male escort, said he would shake the show up.

"The problem with The X Factor is that you have great people on there, but they are sometimes given the wrong songs.

"Sometimes it can be quite cruel but you have to remember, it's a game show."

The show's boss Simon Cowell has yet to confirm this year's line-up sparking rumours that there could be some new faces when it returns in the summer.

[Perdita]

Simon Cowell and Cheryl Cole have reportedly quit the UK 'X Factor'.

The pair - who are joined on the ITV1 show's judging panel by Louis Walsh and Dannii Minogue - have decided to leave their roles to concentrate on the launch of the US version of the talent competition, leaving 'X Factor' bosses terrified it will spell trouble for the new series, with auditions starting in just two weeks.

An insider explained: "The success of the American show means everything to Simon. He is financially and emotionally invested in it and is going up against his biggest rival, Simon Fuller, who runs 'American Idol'.

"He seriously considered commuting between the States and London. Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli do 'Strictly Come Dancing' and its American equivalent at the same time. But all they have to do is watch and judge dancers.

"Simon would have to produce two big shows at the same time and he and Cheryl would have to mentor and judge acts in both countries. It would be just too much for them and it wouldn't work."

Producers are now said to be considering an entire "shake-up" of the judging panel with Louis Walsh facing being axed from the show altogether, with Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, Take That's Robbie Williams and singer Adele all believed to be in the running for a role on the UK show.

The source added to the News of the World newspaper: "There will be a massive shake-up. Simon is a huge, huge loss. He gives the judging panel such authority and there are big fears that many will switch off without him. And two million extra viewers tuned in when Cheryl joined the panel. To lose her as well is a nightmare.

"Dannii looks the most likely to survive. Louis' position is in danger - but no one has been booted off yet. With Simon and Cheryl not there the whole thing could feel very flat."

The first round of 'X Factor' auditions begins on March 6 in front of a panel of show producers at London's O2 Arena.

(C) BANG Media International

[tammyy2j]

I'd say Simon and Cheryl dont do a lot of mentoring anyways