Simon Cowell is the nation’s favourite talent show competition judge, our poll has revealed, while snubbed singer Cheryl Cole and Britain’s Got Talent judges Michael McIntyre and Amanda Holden came second, third and fourth in the ultimate panel stakes.
We gave almost 1,000 Brits who are interested in TV talent shows a list of recent panellists, and asked them to choose up to four individuals to make up their ‘best possible’ judging team.
- 60% of those interested deem music mogul Simon Cowell to be an expert when it comes to presiding over shows such as ‘Pop Idol’, ‘X Factor’ and ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ – perhaps unsurprisingly, since he has created, and starred in, all three, as well as taking the position of head judge on shows here and across the pond
- 33% chose snubbed singer Cheryl Cole, who was recently dropped from the US X Factor panel line-up and not offered a her place back on the UK show (although recent reports suggest she could be welcomed back on the US version), placing her second
- Britain’s Got Talent panellists Michael McIntyre (26%) and Amanda Holden (24%) placed next
- Former X Factor judge Dannii Minogue also fared well with 24% of the vote, while Louis Walsh, the only remaining original judge on this year’s X Factor panel, came next with 23%
- And controversial past X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne netted 21%, along with Britain’s Got Talent panellist and notorious journalist Piers Morgan, on 20%
Getting the right mix of judges often appears key to a show’s success, as television phenomenon The X Factor discovered in 2007, when a media furore forced it to reinstate Louis Walsh following his brief replacement by choreographer Brian Friedman.
The show’s judges are often undeniably bigger stars than the mentees they go on to nurture, and the recent media storm over Cheryl Cole’s sacking from, and possible readmission to, the US version of the X Factor, amid the announcement of this year’s UK judging panel, shows how difficult it can be for even a media mogul like Simon Cowell to amass a perfect panel.
All things considered, however, 61% of British people say they are uninterested in TV talent shows.
