Simon Cowell 'Angry Over X Factor Ratings'

Simon Cowell is reported to be on the warpath after Strictly Come Dancing in the ratings at the weekend.

The reality TV mogul is claimed by The Sun to have been on the phone to producers on Sunday morning, after learning that his show had recorded an average of 7.6 million viewers the night before - with Strictly attracting two million more.

And the paper's source reckons that "everything is up for grabs" on the show now, in a drive to regain viewers.

“Just because Simon is no longer a judge on the show, it doesn’t mean he is hands-off — on the contrary, he has never been more hands-on.

"With Strictly winning the Saturday ratings battle, we know we're now in a real dogfight. Simon and the producers will not rest until the Saturday show is performing better.

"We are very pleased with how Sunday nights are going but the Saturday ratings are not as high as we would like them to be.

"We have a battle on our hands but are determined to come out on top. It's a case of rolling up our sleeves and working even harder."

Options mooted apparently include ditching the new "flash vote" and bringing big-name guests onto the Saturday show as well as the Sunday one.

Shelley Smith became the second act to get the boot from the live shows on Sunday night.

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