Plans for next year’s X Factor judging panel revealed

You know the old saying: ‘If it’s broke, don’t fix it’?

Oh, hang on – that’s not right is it?

Anyway, it seems that’s Simon Cowell’s a little muddled too, because despite the X Factor getting well and truly trounced in the ratings war with Strictly Come Dancing, no changes are likely to be made to the line-up when it returns next year.

Simon is usually a big fan of tinkering with the judging panel whenever the talent show disappears from our screens, but it looks like this year could be different. In fact, The Sun has reported that ITV is already in talks to bring back Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh and Nicole Scherzinger for series 14.

That’d be the first time an entire judging panel did two series on the trot since 2008 – 2010, when Simon and Louis were joined by Dannii Minogue and Cheryl.

An insider told the paper that “negotiations are already well under way” with all three of Simon Cowell’s current sidekicks, apparently because producers are keen to recapture this series’ “reinvigorated energy.” Hmmm.

Indeed, Simon himself also hinted that he’d like to keep the dream team together when pressed last week. “If they will come back, which they may not want to, then everyone can come back,” he said.

However, he wasn’t quite so forthcoming when talk turned to Xtra Factor hosts Rylan Clark-Neal and Matt Edmondson, when he insisted that he doesn’t make “those decisions.”

Convinced? Us neither.

The X Factor has struggled ratings-wise this series, with Strictly pulling in almost DOUBLE the audience on a few occasions.

Back in October the talent show pulled in an average of 5.8 million viewers, while its BBC rival managed 9.8million.

Still, perhaps now Honey G’s finally gone Simon and co can claw back some viewers, eh?