'X Factor' defends use of "fake" scenes

ITV has defended the new series of The X Factor after admitting that some scenes had been re-shot.

At a press launch for the show yesterday, ITV's director of entertainment Paul Jackson said that producers had used "pick-up shots" to film judges' reactions to Brian Friedman's departure from the show and Louis Walsh's subsequent reinstatement. In one scene, Simon Cowell is seen pulling the executive producer aside and telling him that the new judging panel is "just not working".

"Occasionally things will happen that the cameras weren't there for... [so] we go back and reshoot something which we believe is vital to the story and put it in the proper place in the story," said Jackson. "We categorically say to you, whenever we've done this, we shoot exactly what happened, we shoot it very close to the incident and we do it to get the story right."

He added that the version of the episode shown to the press was a "work-in-progress" and promised that where pick-up shots were used, the broadcaster would "find a way to make it clear to the public".

"Everyone at The X Factor and ITV takes this issue of trust incredibly seriously," Jackson continued. "I don't believe we have ever done anything on any of these shows to deceive the public or mislead the public. When our chairman says there will be zero tolerance of misleading and deception, we all buy into that."

Meanwhile, Cowell was asked to guarantee that none of the contestants was an actor. "Every single person is genuine, and believing most importantly, that they can win this competition," he insisted. "I'm pretty much a hundred percent certain that they were all genuine."

The X Factor begins Saturday at 7.40pm on ITV1.