Cowell polishes insults for ratings battle with ‘Strictly’

Simon Cowell said he was ready for "a ratings battle" after it emerged that The X Factor is going up against Strictly Come Dancing in the TV schedules.

The BBC ballroom show launches on Sunday September 7, running from 8pm to 9.15pm, which clashes with the X Factor episode on screen from 8pm to 9.05pm. The new series kicks off tonight.

Speaking at the show’s launch in central London, Cowell said it was the viewers who would lose out. He said: “I always think that when people do that, the people they are pissing off are the viewers. And they say this isn’t a ratings battle — it is, that’s why they did it.”