Louis Walsh slams former X Factor judges Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw: 'They don't know talent'

Louis Walsh has accused former X Factor judges Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw of turning last year's X Factor into a fashion show. The 63-year-old music manager, who is set to make his return to the ITV Saturday night mainstay alongside Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger and Simon Cowell this year, said the pair "don't know a thing about talent".

Speaking to Best Magazine, he said: "Sharon and I are old, but that means we're far more experienced, unlike the young whippersnappers on last year's panel who didn't know a thing about talent. Sharon and I pushed for Nicole, we didn't want Rita Ora. It turned into a fashion show. The panel didn't have the right credentials. They were lightweight."

When speaking about his return to the ITV show, the man behind Boyzone and Westlife said that he was back "with a vengeance".

Ora and Grimshaw originally insisted they stepped down from the show, but, on air, Grimshaw joked that they were actually fired.

BBC Radio 1 breakfast presenter Grimshaw claimed that it was Ora's "nonsense" feedback to contestants that led to their departure.

Cowell recently told the Mirror that hiring Ora and Grimshaw had been a "mistake". He said: "When we announced the new line-up, it was 95% positive. No one was saying it was a mistake and that was what we were getting last year."

He continued: "I mean the minute we announced it, it was like f**k, this doesn't feel great, let's see how it goes. But it was tough."

It's not just the judges who are making a comeback in this series. Former host Dermot O'Leary is set to return following the departure of Caroline Flack and Olly Murs. The 43-year-old left the show last year after helming it for eight seasons.