Cheryl who? New X Factor judges get thumbs up

Talent show behemoth The X Factor returns to British screens on Saturday night with a virtually all-new line-up. Simon Cowell is in LA launching the American version, while Cheryl Cole and Dannii Minogue have been frozen out, leaving Louis Walsh as the only familiar face on the four-person judging panel.

The changes reportedly have ITV executives nervous.

Will viewers be excited by the new judges: Take That's Gary Barlow, Destiny's Child singer Kelly Rowland and Tulisa Contostavlos of pop group N-Dubz?

Or will they skip the early rounds and wait for the potential stars to emerge from the dross, potentially losing the show ad revenue to the tune of £12m?

Despite - or perhaps because of - these fears, no expense was spared at last night's screening of the first episode in front of fans and TV critics.

The new judges made an entrance worthy of Cowell himself, airlifted by helicopter into the O2 Arena to the apocalyptic strains of O Fortuna.

According to the Independent's Adam Sherwin, it looks as if ITV aim to make up for the loss of its star judges by focusing instead on the "deluded" hopefuls.

The highlight of the launch show is a return performance by a previous X Factor hopeful called George. He rounds off his soul performance by swearing at the judges and calling Tulisa a "dog" before being escorted away by security guards.

But the Guardian's John Plunkett says there’s nothing wrong with the new judges. Kelly Rowland and Tulisa Contostavlos are more than adequate replacements for Cole and Minogue while Gary Barlow - Cowell's stand-in 'Mr Nasty' - is a "natural".

Despite Cowell's absence, his presence will be felt in this the eighth series of The X Factor, as Sherwin points out. "The X Factor creator might appear distracted in LA but don't be fooled. He's watching all the rushes and whispering into the ears of the judges to whom he has entrusted his baby. And as Cheryl found, whether on-screen or off, Cowell remains the ultimate judge." ·