X Factor Bosses Minimizing Mel B

Mel B is persona non grata on the X Factor UK set.

X FACTOR bosses have virtually airbrushed Mel B from early episodes to fit in fawning coverage of returning judge Cheryl Fernandez-Versini.

This weekend’s shows feature several “tribute” montages to Cheryl, including a string of wannabes performing her songs and dressing up as her. Mel is barely seen in the shows.

At one point, a male contestant tells the Girls Aloud star how much he likes her, prompting Mel B to shout: “What am I, f****** chopped liver?” She later joked: “I hate sitting next to this one.”

And when an Irish singer gives Cheryl a green rose, Mel asks: “Where’s mine?”

Of the uneven coverage, Cheryl said only: “There was a lot of love for me. The contestants are very kind to me.” Simon Cowell laughed when asked why there was less screen time for Mel, saying: “Maybe we’ll do that in episodes three and four.”

Cheryl insisted she and Mel were friends, saying: “Mel’s great, actually. We bonded instantly. She cracks me up laughing.”

And Louis Walsh claimed the women had a great relationship, adding: “For some reason, they really work. I don’t think we’ve ever had two girls on the show that genuinely works on-screen and off-screen.”

Cheryl said she found it “hell” putting contestants through the show’s six-chair challenge. That section, introduced last year, lets judges swap contestants in and out before deciding who goes on to the judges’ houses stage.

Cheryl, who married Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini in July, said: “The six-chair challenge was hell for me.

I didn’t enjoy it one little bit but as I progressed, I got to understand what it was about and I knew that in the end I had to take through the six people I believed had variety and had talent and I could work with well.” The X Factor returns tomorrow with a second show on Sunday.

Jacked from The Sun