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allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" flashvars="playerId=TelegraphPlayer_7956629&embedCode=V3MHduMTovpr2AsSR-fI8tIWjHKvGJXR&me=TelegraphPlayer_7956629&callback=ooyalaEventHandler7956629&version=2&thruParam_tmgui[relatedVideo]=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn.api.ooyala.com%2Fv2%2Fassets%3Fwhere%3Dembed_code%2Bin%2B%2528%2527dwZXZuMTq0RuXta8Y6W2PfasExxkzHQP%2527%252C%252703NXNuMTraMeSKJKszMRgmjFywD_jS5V%2527%252C%2527NudXRuMTqeubSOjrdUYpR2vSQ2t8iTPu%2527%252C%2527V3MHduMTovpr2AsSR-fI8tIWjHKvGJXR%2527%2529%26api_key%3DRvbGU6Z74XE_a3bj4QwRGByhq9h2.WFFAb%26expires%3D1640995199%26signature%3D%252BPBkA34DYS4zmLti605tP%252FgnlSiR0QKvdLAz16LbmrU&playerBrandingId=7dfd98005dba40baacc82277f292e522" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer"> </embed> </object> </noscript> </div> </div></div> </div> </div> <div class="imageExtras"> <a class="linkToVideo" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/7956629/The-X-Factor-returns-audition-preview.html">Link to this video</a> <div class="cl"></div> </div> </div> <div class="cl"> </div>  <div class="bylineComments"> <div> <p class="bylineBody">By Michael Hogan</p> </div> <p class="publishedDate">12:21PM BST 20 Aug 2010</p> <p class="comments"> <img src="/web/20120828182747im_/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/template/ver1-0/i/share/comments.gif" alt="Comments"/><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/7955911/X-Factor-is-there-anyone-left-who-has-it.html#disqus_thread" dsqid="7955911">Comments</a> </p> <div class="cl"> </div> </div> <div id="mainBodyArea"> <div class="firstPar"><p> The X Factor blusters back on to our screens tonight, accompanied by the usual hype and melodrama. Since 2004, the search for singing talent has dominated the television landscape every autumn. But could our love affair with Simon Cowell be about to suffer a seventh-series itch? Will the dazzling smile be wiped from the face of the superannuated Svengali? There are half a dozen signs that this is crunch time for Mr Cowell… </p></div><div class="secondPar"> <p></p></div><div class="thirdPar"> <p> <strong>Unlucky seven</strong> </p></div><div class="fourthPar"> <p> The new series has been plagued by disruptions. The same half-dozen hits kept coming up during auditions and Cowell eventually had to ban certain songs for fear of boring viewers. For the same reason has tried to rein in the sob stories of the young hopefuls. There were also unsettling whispers that former One Show presenter Christine Bleakley was going to be drafted in as a late replacement for host Dermot O’Leary. Most inconveniently of all, half the judging panel went Awol, with Dannii Minogue on maternity leave and Cheryl Cole missing a month’s filming due to malaria. This means the usual quartet will be at half strength for much of this series, instead supplemented by guest popettes Katy Perry, Natalie Imbruglia, Pixie Lott, Nicole Scherzinger and Geri Halliwell. Will this fudged fix be enough? </p></div><div class="fifthPar"> <p></p></div><div id="tmg-related-links" class="related_links_inline"> <div class="headerOne styleSix"><h2><span>Related Articles</span></h2></div> <ul> <li class="bullet"> <p> <a href="/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/7955579/X-Factor-returns-Cheryl-Cole-back-after-malaria.html">X Factor returns</a> </p> <span class="relContDate">20 Aug 2010</span> </li> <li class="photo"> <p> <a href="/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/7954640/X-Factor-2010-the-oddballs-from-Jedward-to-Chico.html">X Factor: the oddballs, from Chico to Jedward</a> </p> <span class="relContDate">19 Aug 2010</span> </li> <li class="photo"> <p> <a href="/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/7948201/X-Factor-finalists-where-are-they-now.html">The X Factor: where are they now?</a> </p> <span class="relContDate">17 Aug 2012</span> </li> <li class="bullet"> <p> <a href="/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/8195912/Scottish-rockers-Biffy-Clyro-set-to-be-big-X-Factor-winners.html">Scottish rockers Biffy Clyro set to be big X Factor winners</a> </p> <span class="relContDate">11 Dec 2010</span> </li> <li class="video"> <p> <a href="/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturevideo/musicvideo/7885946/Franz-Ferdinand-X-factor-is-corny-and-cheesy.html">Franz Ferdinand: X factor is 'corny and cheesy'</a> </p> <span class="relContDate">20 Jul 2010</span> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="body"> <p> <strong>Never mind the ballads</strong> </p> <p> Last series’ alumni have flopped or vanished, depending how kindly you spin it. Toothy Geordie winner Joe McElderry’s only release all year has been a press announcement about his sexuality. Both he and runner-up Olly Murs will launch singles with high-profile guest spots this series, but it’s telling that last year’s main success so far has been tuneless twins John and Edward Grimes, aka Jedward – who Cowell disowned as a novelty act. </p> <p> Previous winners Steve Brookstein, Shayne Ward and Leon Jackson have returned to anonymity. Leona Lewis and, to a lesser extent, Alexandra Burke are the only winners with any semblance of celebrity. At a time when the charts are dominated by dance, rap and futuristic r&b, and the planet’s biggest pop star is flamboyant Lady Gaga, the show’s emphasis on power ballads seems to belong to a bygone age. Can The X Factor reinvent itself, become relevant and regain some street cred? </p> <p></p> <p> <strong>Weary Si</strong> </p> <p> The entertainment baron has suffered a disappointing year. It started with a slap in the face from the record-buying public. In recent years, The X Factor winner has been the Christmas number one, but a backlash against this bland predictability was organised by protesters orchestrating a Facebook campaign to buy Rage Against the Machine’s alt-rock anthem Killing in the Name instead. To add insult to injury, ratings dipped this summer on Britain’s Got Talent (down 19 per cent year on year) and American Idol (down 18 per cent). </p> <p></p> <p> <strong>Time! To face! The facts!</strong> </p> <p> Britain has a population of 61 million – one-fifth that of America – so the talent pool isn’t bottomless. Is this why the annual trawl for Leona v2.0 keeps coming up short? With so many television talent searches, stage schools and online shortcuts to fame such as YouTube, maybe all the amateurs with ability have been discovered. Cowell said this summer that something similar happened on Britain’s Got Talent, admitting “the pond has been fished dry”. Last year, The X Factor papered over the vocal flaws of several finalists with increased production pizzazz. This series has an even bigger budget, effectively staging a weekly pop concert. But how long can the show go on if the singers can’t sing? </p> <p></p> <p> <strong>The US factor</strong> </p> <p> Next year heralds a key phase of Cowell’s plans for world domination: the launch of X Factor in the US as a rival to American Idol, on which he served as star judge for nine series. It’s rumoured he’s teaming up with retailer Philip Green to launch an X Factor venue in Las Vegas, which will be the home of stage shows broadcast worldwide on the web and will host The X Factor UK and US live rounds. This will all take time, money and many miles of transatlantic travel. Is Cowell in danger of spreading himself too thinly? He showed signs of boredom during Britain’s Got Talent this summer, and next series he will delegate most of his judging duties. Could the same happen on sister show The X Factor? In comparison to this Vegas glitz and potential US audiences of 40 million, the UK series may well start to feel little-league and lacklustre. </p> <p></p> <p> <strong>What competition’s all about</strong> </p> <p> It’s a compliment to X Factor’s success that with each passing year it is faced with more rivals. Sky 1 has just launched Must Be the Music, an uncannily similar contest except that it trumpets its “superstar judges with talent” – a direct dig at X Factor’s panel of management moguls and mimers. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s West End talent searches are in some ways a wholesome version of Cowell’s, while the likes of Last Choir Standing and Don’t Stop Believing have tapped into the Glee phenomenon. The BBC also annually schedules Strictly Come Dancing against it from September. It’s a very tough market in which to stay on top. Is this when the pressure starts to show? </p> <p></p> <p> The X Factor is on ITV1 on Saturday 21 August at 7.30pm </p> <p> <strong>The X Factor in numbers </strong> </p> <p> 22 countries have bought The X Factor format </p> <p> 500m: the show’s total global audience </p> <p> 19.7m: the peak UK audience last series </p> <p> 10m votes cast in last December’s final </p> <p> £33m budget for this year’s series, up from £29m last year </p> <p> 200,000 auditionees last series </p> <p> 900,000 wannabes have auditioned since the first series </p> </div> <div class="cl"></div> </div></div> </div> <div class="oneSixth">  <script src="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747js_/http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript"></script> <div id="shareSideContainer" class="loading"> <div class="print invisible"><a href="javascript:print()" alt="Print" title="Print"> </a></div> <div id="shareSide" class="storyFunc nobord"></div> <div class="cl"></div> </div> <div class="storyfct"> <div id="storyMoreOnFucntion"> <div class="secLinks"> <div class="section"> <div class="name"> <h2><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/x-factor/">X Factor</a></h2> </div> <div class="cl"></div> </div> <ul> <li class="first"> <h3><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/">Culture »</a></h3> </li> <li> <h3><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/">TV and Radio »</a></h3> </li> <li> <h3><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120828182747/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/editors-choice/">Editor's Choice »</a></h3> </li> </ul> <div class="cl"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="related_links"> </div> <div class="summaryMedium secPuffs"> <div class="headerOne styleSix"><p>In X Factor</p></div> <div class="summary "> <div class="summarySmall"> <div class="piccentre containerdiv "> <div class="playButton" style="width: 140px; 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