Dermot O’Leary says X Factor ‘DEFINITELY won’t be back next year’ and that it will be 2022 at the earliest due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Fans hoping to see The X Factor return in 2021 have had hopes dashed by host of the show Dermot O’Leary.
The presenter, 47, revealed on Sunday that he has ‘no idea’ when the series will resume and that he thinks it’ll be 2022 at the earliest, thanks to the pandemic sweeping the globe.
Asked about it on Sunday Brunch, Dermot said: ‘If I knew, I’d tell you, because I’d be happy. I’ve no idea!’
Two years to go! Fans hoping to see The X Factor return in 2021 have had hopes dashed by host of the show Dermot O’Leary [pictured in 2016]
Talking about the logistics of the series – which involves mass gatherings of people for open public auditions, travel around the world and arenas packed with a large-scale audience – Dermot said: ‘It’s got the turning circle of a car ferry. There’s a lot of planning that goes into it.
‘It definitely won’t be next year, so it will probably be back in 2022.’
The X Factor was halted this year when COVID-19 raged the planet, rendering it impossible to produce the show.
Asked whether he has spoke about it to show boss Simon Cowell, Dermot said: ‘We’ve been in touch.’
Indefinite hiatus: The presenter, 47, revealed on Sunday that he has ‘no idea’ when the series will resume and that he thinks it’ll be 2022 at the earliest
Asked about it on Sunday Brunch, Dermot said: ‘If I knew, I’d tell you, because I’d be happy. I’ve no idea!’
Of Simon’s recent injuries – which saw him break his back and sit out the resumed 2020 series of Britain’s Got Talent after it returned following lockdown 1 – Dermot said: ‘He’s getting better, slowly by surely…’
Dermot has hosted the show since 2007 – taking over from former host Kate Thornton, who was presenter from 2004–2006.
He has hosted every series since, aside from in 2015 where he was replaced with former contestant Olly Murs and late Love Island presenter Caroline Flack.
This series was considered somewhat of a disaster, with Nick Grimshaw and Rita Ora instaled on the judging panel alongside Simon and Cheryl and an infamous slip-up in which Olly told one contestant she was eliminated before she actually was, live on air.
Asked whether he has spoke about it to show boss Simon Cowell, Dermot said: ‘We’ve been in touch’
Logistical nightmare: The series involves mass gatherings of people for open public auditions, travel around the world and arenas packed with a large-scale audience [Robbie Williams, Ayda Williams, Louis Tomlinson and Simon are pictured during the 2018 season]
Dermot was swiftly drafted back in the following year.
However, the show has suffered iffy ratings and accusations of being repetitive in recent years, and for the first time since its inception was replaced in 2019 with an X Factor: Celebrity series.
This featured reality stars, actors, journalists and other presenters, all vying to make a name for themselves in the world of singing – with no members of the public included at all.
A second mini-series aired after this called X Factor: The Band, in which Simon and Nicole Scherzinger auditioned members of the public looking to be part of the next boy or girl group.
The short series ended with a girl band being awarded a record contract – but little has been heard of them since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
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