The X Factor and Strictly

Set in use:

Tuned in to see what the set was like... remembered why I haven't done so in 3 years. God this is cringeworthy.

For some reason the set of stairs, takes me back to the Pop Idol set.

The new set is great and the studio looks huge. Will be interesting to see how many shows end up using this LH2 (or whatever it’s called).

Slightly odd new format point of there being an overall winner of the weekend (which I kind of get in a Star Baker sort of way) but they then also win a prize, this week being jetted off to New York to see Pink. Nice filler for their weekly VTs but a bit odd nonetheless. As we’ve seen from the phone votes released for previous series there’s often a contestant who ends up winning the public votes many weeks so it might get a little tiresome if we see the same winner being jetted off every week.

Long overdue new set - and very nice it is too.

Given the facilities backstairs, not a lot I imagine.

Yes I heard finding a working toilet is quite a challenge

The dodgy scaffolding-pole balustrade at the back of the studio we saw Dermot walking alongside at the beginning of the show was rather special.

Remember, it's not a studio - it's a warehouse with a nice flat floor, a roof designed to hang lots of stuff off, and a few basic office and changing areas. It's main purpose is to practice large touring shows, so it spends more time with sweaty crew trying to work out how to fit 10 trucks worth of stuff into 6 trucks than actually hosting events.

I understand that there's to be a sing-off between Saturday's winner and Sunday's winner - so the judges are unlikely to choose the same 'weekend winner' week after week. There will presumably also be no deadlock, as no reasonably comparable 'earlier vote' to refer back to - so quite a nice way of making the sing-off more 'meaningful' while removing the jeopardy of actually eliminating someone.

In the event of a tie, I'd quite like to see a "decide collectively or nobody gets the prize" resolution - much easier to follow through on than the oft-mooted but impractical "decide collectively or both contestants get eliminated" resolution in the old format.

Pres-wise - the rectangular screen on the rhomboidal face of the judges' desk is an oddly distracting and cheap-looking choice.

I think it's supposed to be rustic, like bare brick walls in a trendy apartment. I think we saw similar on SLFN last night too.

I’d believe that if the rest of the set wansn’t shiny, sparkly and showbizzy.