Cheryl Tweedy 3

In June 2008, it was announced Cheryl Cole would replace Sharon Osbourne as a judge for the fifth series of The X Factor. Cole was given the girls category (made up of female contestants between 16 and 25) and subsequently ended up as the victorious judge when Alexandra Burke was crowned the fifth winner of The X Factor on 13 December 2008. Cheryl Cole returned for the sixth series in 2009 and was given the boys category (made up of male contestants aged 16 to 25). Cheryl Cole emerged as the winning judge for a second consecutive year after Joe McElderry was crowned the sixth winner of The X Factor. Simon Cowell, the show's creator, said, "I knew she was going to be good because she speaks like normal people speak. People can relate to that. And I think that is the best sign of a judge." Cowell has referred to Cheryl Cole as "one of the best I've ever worked with." She returned for a further series in 2010 to mentor the girls category (made of female contestants aged 16 to 28). On 5 May 2011, it was officially announced after months of speculation that Cole would appear as a judge alongside Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid, and Paula Abdul on the upcoming first season of the American version of The X Factor. However, after only three weeks as a judge and completing the auditions in Los Angeles and Chicago, Cole was fired from the show by Fox. Additionally, it has since been confirmed that she won't be returning to the UK version of the show either, as Kelly Rowland and Tulisa Contostavlos have taken her and Dannii Minogue's places on the judging panel.