Comedian and television personality David Walliams is to take part in The X Factor.
The Britain’s Got Talent judge is keen to show off his singing talents in the upcoming celebrity version of the singing contest and his friend, showrunner Simon Cowell, thinks he’ll be “amazing”.
Simon said: “I think David [Walliams] might enter, seriously, that would be amazing.”
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The 59-year-old music mogul is keen to see the stars who take part in the show make a genuine bid for chart success, following in the footsteps of former Neighbours co-stars Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan, and Soldier, Soldier actors Robson Green and Jerome Flynn.
He told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “In the same way Pete Waterman made Kylie and Jason musical stars, and what I did with Robson and Jerome, I’d like to think through the process we’ll find someone who can sell records rather than just doing the show as a stunt.”
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There will be no public auditions for the show and Simon admitted changing the format of The X Factor has given him a “buzz”.
He added: “I’m excited again because my focus is who will be on the show.”
The talent show judge sang the praises of producer Pete Waterman, admitting he had “followed him around like a dog for two years” to learn as much as he could from the celebrated hitmaker.
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He said: “One day he said to me, ‘Why are you following me around?’ and I said, ‘Because I want to learn from you, I think you’re great.’ That was a turning point in my life. He was like a mentor.”
Simon previously admitted he hopes last year’s judges – Louis Tomlinson, Robbie Williams and Ayda Field – will be back for the new show.
He said: “I think and hope the panel will be the same. I’m literally speaking to Robbie tonight because he’s been busy, I’ve been filming, so I’ll have more news again on that soon.”
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