Minogue: 'Osbourne made me cry'

Dannii Minogue has admitted that she was reduced to tears on The X Factor last year after facing a backlash from her fellow judges.

The Aussie popstar joined the panel in June 2007 after Simon Cowell decided to revamp the ITV1 talent show, but she claims that Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh tried to make her first year as difficult as possible.

"The hardest thing, having been such a fan of the show and the judges, was thinking, 'Oh my God, I'm going to meet Sharon Osbourne' - then I walked into the room and she hated me," Minogue told the Daily Mail. "There was nothing I could do to change that, and it continued for the whole series."

Asked if Osbourne and Walsh made her cry, she replied: "Yes. I'm strong, but I can fall to pieces just like most people. I tried to get through it in private and deal with it in my own way. But I wasn't strong every day. Yes, it did upset me. Some days Sharon was nice to me and other days she wasn't. In the end we just stayed as far away from each other as we could."

Minogue also denied falling out with her new co-star and rival mentor Cheryl Cole, adding: "But Cheryl's going to be the one to beat this year. All the girls in her category are strong, and she's doing an incredible job."