Britney Spears - Britney Spears Has To 'Be Herself' On X Factor, Says Scherzinger

Though Scherzinger essentially made room for Britney on the panel, she was happy to offer some sage advice to her replacement, telling E! Online, "Britney is so bubbly and warm and everyone loves her anyway, so she just has to be herself.I think that it's something that we can't deny, but there's something about Britney that we ... are always rooting for her and behind her, no matter what". Paul Abdul - who was also axed from the show following the underwhelming audience figures of last season - was also on-hand to wish Britney good luck, telling Perez Hilton, "I think it's going to be great, and I'll tell you why. I think people are anticipating seeing Britney Spears. She's overcome a tremendous amount of adversity. And I'm always for the underdog coming back.She's a big star". It's true that Britney remains one of the most popular artists in the world, and it's certainly a huge coup for Cowell and the X Factor bosses to have her on the panel. However, some critics have alluded to Spears' unpredictable behaviour, suggesting the show should have sought safer options such as Katy Perry or Mariah Carey.

According to the Britney fan-site breatheheavy.com, Britney and Lovato will sit behind the judges' table for the first time on Thursday (May 24, 2012) for the Austin auditions.