‘X Factor’ bosses have been forced to scrap plans to screen the Judges Houses stage of the competition live.
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Simon Cowell and producers previously announced that the show’s judges would pick their finalists from exotic locations around the world in a fully live broadcast, while hosts Olly Murs and Caroline Flack held the show together in a London studio.
Sinitta's outfits are a familiar sight at Judges Houses
However, the idea has been shelved, having proved to be a logistical nightmare for staff on the ITV talent show, the Mirror reports.
Contestants will still sing for judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw at their homes abroad as in previous years but, as part of the revised plan, the final 12 will be chosen live in a UK TV studio.
This means they will have an agonising wait after singing at Judges Houses to discover whether or not they have made it through.
An ‘X Factor’ source told the paper: “We’ve always planned to have a live element to Judges Houses, to give it more tension and drama. The biggest part of the show is the contestants’ reactions - finding out whether they have made it to the live shows and learning who the final 12 are.
“Now that we are finalising our plans this will all happen live from the studio in Wembley with all the judges and the contestants together, along with their friends and family.
“For the rest of the show we are going to pre-record the contestants performing on location, as logistically and technically this will give us the best show for viewers.”
Bosses also thought successful contestants would be placed at a disadvantage if they’d have had to fly back to the UK after live Judges Houses, as the live shows begin just six days later, leaving them to little time to battle jetlag and rehearse.
Cheryl Fernandez-Versini was helped out by Tinie Tempah last year
The change of plan is a blow for Simon, who admitted he was looking forward to the chaos that sound problems and satellite delays may have posed.
He told the Daily Star: “I know that it could go wrong. But I think that’s part of the fun.
“I often think when we do live shows, I wish something would fall from the ceiling on to the stage just to show it’s live.”
Judges Houses are set to air across one weekend on 24 and 25 October.
The ‘X Factor’ airs its final auditions episode on Saturday (19 September), before the competition moves to Bootcamp on Sunday.
