Saara Aalto calls for The X Factor to be 'rested' after shake-up plans revealed

Instead of its usual incarnation, where singers audition in front of the judges in the hope of winning a record deal, music mogul Simon Cowell has since announced the show will be split into two, shorter programmes – one ‘All Stars’ edition made up of former contestants and winners, and one celebrity version of the show.

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However, Dancing on Ice finalist Saara Aalto, who was runner-up on the show in 2016, believes it may be better to just cancel the X Factor for a few years to refresh the format, as it's too similar to rival singing shows such as The Voice.

Speaking to RadioTimes.com and other journalists ahead of the Dancing on Ice final, the 31-year-old explained, “I think it’s good that they’ve changed things [but] I think they should just give it a rest for a couple of years and come back to it.

“There’s too many TV shows like that now.”

Saara, who will face off against Love Island star Wes Nelson and Strictly dancer James Jordan in the Dancing on Ice final, added she would not be interested in joining the All Star edition of the show, as she feels she was too recently a contestant.

“It’s too early,” she said. “I only starred on the show a couple of years ago. I could do it in 10 years.

“I think they should try some contestants from series before mine.”

But Saara teased she was interested in a role on the judging panel, having played the role on the Finnish version of The X Factor in 2018 and won the series with her category.

“I would love to be a judge on X Factor UK. I have done competitions a bit too much now, I think,” she said.

“I would like to be on the other side of the table. I have the experience of being a contestant and so I’m a good judge. I can help people.”

However, she added that she found The X Factor to be one of the “hardest times” in her life, adding that living in the X Factor house was “a nightmare.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-JBP4VBXHY

“Both Dancing on Ice and The X Factor have been hard,” she said. “But The X Factor was different. It was about my whole career, it was about my life.

“Every single week I was fighting for my life. My dream was to always be an international singer and I was on X Factor trying to prove I can do it. This is physically and mentally super hard, but it’s not so serious.”

The X Factor is scheduled to return to ITV later this year

Dancing on Ice concludes on Sunday 10th March at 6pm on ITV

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