Sinitta is set to return to the Judges' Houses round on 'The X Factor' this year.

Sinitta

Sinitta

The 'So Macho' hitmaker has always been on hand to help her close friend Simon Cowell with mentoring and the selection stage of the show, so it's hardly surprising she was fuming when he dropped her last year and replaced her with Mel B.

But the 53-year-old singer believes the programme boss has realised he made a "big mistake" and has now asked her if she'll return to his abode abroad for this series.

Speaking to The Sun newspaper, she said: "I'm going back to the X Factor this year. Simon has admitted he made a big mistake by replacing me with a Spice Girl - even though they are fabulous.

"He's realised it's not about who's the most successful or who's made the most money. It's about chemistry and we have that, so he said he wants me back."

This isn't the first time the 57-year-old music mogul has backtracked on his plans as he was forced to apologise last year when he asked Louis Walsh to return as a judge and Dermot O'Leary to reprise his hosting duties after he sacked them in 2015.

Sinitta explained to the publication: "Simon will always admit that he's made a mistake -- it's exactly what he did with Dermot and Louis. He's not afraid to say sorry, which is admirable and manly. I respect him for that."

Meanwhile, Simon is on a desperate mission to save the show from getting the chop after last year's viewing figures were a flop, so has decided to change the location of the auditions, reduce the amount of novelty acts and slash the running plan.

A source said recently: "Ratings plummeted and Simon knew a drastic revamp was needed. The Saturday night show became so tedious as there was rarely any drama which an eviction would bring. ITV believes transforming it is the right decision.

"It means all singers will perform on both Saturday and Sunday evenings, with acts being eliminated both nights. They are doing the Thorpe Park auditions early on, too, because producers think the unconventional location will create some funny footage. They want to get shots of the judges on white-knuckle rides.

"Ultimately, show bosses are determined to make another star. They don't want the show to be a laughing stock again like it was with Honey G."

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