Although the judges usually whisk their six hopefuls off to glamorous locations, giving them a taste of the life they could be living after the show, this year one category is reportedly going to be very disappointed.
Because Nick Grimshaw is allegedly taking his boys to… Manchester.
According to insiders, Nick, 30, needs to be close to London because of his Radio 1 morning show.
A source told the Sunday People: “He’s in the studio every morning Monday to Friday so has to get back quickly after ‘X Factor’ filming. They’ve plumped for Greater Manchester as Nick grew up in Oldham and the area’s close to his heart.
“It’s lovely but not exactly what most of the boys will be expecting.”
Especially not when they find where the rest of the hopefuls are going. Simon Cowell is taking the over 25s to a French Chateau, Cheryl and the groups are off to Rome while Rita Ora will film her scenes with the girls in LA.
News of Nick’s unglamorous location comes after it was reported Louis Walsh is returning to the show – as a fifth impartial judge.
It’s been claimed that ITV and 55-year-old Simon are unimpressed with ‘boring’ Nick and are hoping Louis can make up for it.