thanks Dancc, though I had very little to do with it

PS - have you all noticed the search function on the website

probably not quite what you guys want, but should be a bit useful

I'm not.

thank you too James

Indeed – some people have no manners at all.

I must admit I'm not all that keen (I wish the numbers were a little closer to the programme title), but I'm sure we'll all get used to it.

National Lottery Draw shows will be televised from Pinewood Studios from January under a new four-year deal between the studios, BBC and Camelot. The contract has the option of a further two-year extension.

Not much XF discussion here today as expected

But what do you think they'll end up doing next year? They'll have to draft in Cheryl as a permanent judge, they couldn't lose Gary as at least one of his acts have made it to the final during his time there.

But it's a bit 'ouch', looking at that 12.8m peak compared to the 19.4m we saw just 2 years ago. I'm surprised it's not a bit higher, at least above 13m, as usually the second part of the final would see an increase by at least 2-3m.

Great news but could you ask them to actually film it in Halifax, not Skipton, Rochdale, Huddersfield and Hebden Bridge, none of which are.....er......Halifax.

Last night was Gary's last show - he knows it and he'll walk before he gets pushed. ITV aren't going to fight to keep him again.

I could see them going for Cheryl but I'm not convinced it's the right move. Tulisa won't survive. I'm not convinced Louis and Nicole will survive either, much as I have liked her and he is a part of the furniture.

The important thing is to make sure they do more than change the judges.

All Quiet on the Preston Front was filmed in Padiham and Burnley, and I don't think any of it was filmed in Preston.

So BBC1 has form with its Tuesday night comfort comedy dramas

I honestly think getting rid of the arena auditions would ruin it altogether. It takes away the excitement.

I think this is the second time where BGT beats XF on peak. In 2009 it posed a peak of 19.2m compared to XF's 19.1m, and this year it had a peak of 14.5m compared to XF's 12.8m.

Also, BGT managed a larger average over a larger amount of time (150 minutes), compared to 120 minutes last night - 11.9m to 11.1m.

I assume they're including Sky Go viewings which are not picked up by BARB (unless device is connected to TV, which defeats the object of the service!!).

she might grate on some, but I think Mel B would be a good judge to have on TXF. She's ballsy enough to talk back to the contestants and I reckon she'd generate some sort of opinion from the viewers

I'm judging this purely on the amount the tweets that flooded by my timeline when she was a guest judge at the auditions (as I don't actually watch TXF)

Nicole has been a good addition to the panel and one of the high points of this series. For the sake of consistency I don't think they could afford to do a wholesale revamp of the panel, and I think Nicole has earned another series after this year.

Well spotted. It's a first. I suppose Sky viewers shifting from PC to TV is bound to make a difference. I've watched one episode of this series through catch up on the TV.

Next year X Factor should revamp with Nicole Sherzinger, Louis Walsh, Mel B and Simon Cowell.

It should drop the mentoring element to allow Simon to do both shows, and have a retooled format, fewer audition weeks (do 2 episodes a week instead of 1). Nothing should be sacred or untouchable, from the format, to the panel, to every element of the presentation, to the number of episodes and the durations of them.

I think only the return of Simon and major changes to freshen the show up will save it. I do, however, think Simon rescued BGT by returning and I'm certain he'll do it again.

Can see ratings increasing next year if such changes are implemented! Incidentally despite the lowest in a good while 11m over 2 hours is nothing to cringe at. I enjoyed the final, and possibly the best singer in XF history won it, so we can't argue it's not finding credible artists.

I think she'll be considered. But the Australian version is doing well so I'm not sure if it would happen. I think a female dominated panel is a possibility - the women always get the attention these days and 99% of suggestions for new judges seem to be female.

They also need to get back to a panel where only one judge is regularly "mean". Cheryl & Dannii barely said anything negative and if they did it was covered up by sickly sweet platitudes. Louis usually only criticised Simon's acts. With Louis & Gary not having much chemistry, Gary being "Mr Nasty mk II" and being really grim with it plus Tulisa being more reserved and grumpy this year there was too much negativity at times. Better contestants would help with this as well!

So if you had Mel B, then they'd be looking for Cheryl/Dannii type girls that are just paid to look pretty, speak in a nice accent and smile. If only Michelle Keegan was a popstar, she'd be perfect!

They can't. The show must have no upper age limit, be open to groups and solo singers, the judges must be in competition with each other and reduce the number of contestants in their categories in a "judges houses" stage.

'Credible artists'? Er - hello?!?

There's nothing credible about anyone who enters The X Factor. Any contestant at the very least compromises, if not sacrifices their credibility by taking that route.

If you want Plan B-lite, then I'm sure James Arthur is for you. But the show is not designed to generate artistic integrity or anything like it. It's there to line up people who'll make money for Simon Cowell, and do as they are instructed. End of. As James Arthur will soon find out.

I don't mind the new look and the "ABCD" links help but I can't get the "viewing share graph" to display?

(using FF with AdBlocker)

K

Why must it be anything?

Am I the only one not getting the aggro about the BARB makeover? Seems pretty straightforward and functional. Perfectly clear to read, maybe a bit more scrolling involved. I was expecting something crazy from some of the comments on here!

The "X Factor characteristics" were agreed between Syco, Fremantle and 19 Entertainment in 2005. X Factor can't remove them and Idol can't add them unless the other agrees to it (and they won't).

I've been put right by Sky!!!

BBC drama is on a roll at the moment with the renewal of Last Tango in Halifax, making it the fifth new drama this year which has been a success for BBC One and coming back next year. I believe no new drama from Itv1 this year is getting a second series apart from Inspector Morse spin off.

It was still a good rating for the X factor in the end despite the fact that it is down on previous years. At one stage, I did wonder if it would get over 10 million for the final show but it shows that there is still an interest in who wins. This is probably down to the fact that it has produced at least one or two successful artists. I definitely think Simon will be back next year