Louis Walsh Reignites Feud with Cheryl
Former X Factor judge Louis Walsh has again spoken out about his past management of the girl group Girls Aloud, claiming they were difficult to manage due to internal friction and that Cheryl Cole required significant assistance.
Louis Walsh, a former judge on The X Factor, has reignited his long-standing feud with singer Cheryl, stating that Girls Aloud was a "difficult" group to manage because the members "don't like each other." Walsh, 74, managed the band, which included Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts, and Kimberley Walsh, from 2002 to 2004 after they formed on the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals.
In a recent appearance on The 2 Johnnies podcast, Walsh commented on the group's career, noting they "had some great records" but suggesting they "should have been much bigger in Europe." He attributed this to internal competitiveness and a perceived lack of cohesion within the group. Walsh admitted he "inherited" management of Girls Aloud and was "never really into it," though he acknowledged their success in the UK and Ireland.
Walsh also revisited his comments about Cheryl's time as an X Factor judge, where she served from 2008 to 2010 and again in 2014 and 2015. He stated that while she "looked fantastic, looked great," it "took a lot of help," and suggested she received a "sympathy vote" due to personal issues at the time, referencing her public split from footballer Ashley Cole. Walsh described Cheryl as having become the "nation's sweetheart" but deemed her performance as a judge as "good, not great."
He went on to praise other X Factor judges, including Rita Ora, Kelly Rowland, Dannii Minogue, Gary Barlow, and Nicole Scherzinger, whom he described as hardworking and competitive.
The X Factor, which launched the careers of artists like Leona Lewis and One Direction, was shelved by ITV after 15 series, with subsequent spin-offs like X Factor: Celebrity and X Factor: The Band. Recent reports suggest that ITV is considering a revamp of the show, potentially with Simon Cowell returning in some capacity, to fill a gap in its weekend entertainment schedule and avoid further expensive programming failures.