The eagerly awaited brand new series of the X Factor starts this weekend with its all new judging panel and presenters.

This will be the first year of the show that veteran Louis Walsh has not been a judge on and sees him replaced by newcomers Nick Grimshaw and Rita Ora. Cheryl Fernandez-Versini and Simon Cowell will be reprising their roles as judges and Caroline Flack and Olly Murs are taking over from former presenter Dermot O'Leary.

Cowell has been very vocal about this series and has revealed that hopefuls have been given more creative freedom during their auditions having been allowed to bring backing dancers and even their own graphics.

"We basically said to ourselves that we shouldn't apply any rules to the auditions," he said.

"If they want dancers, this or that, dogs, cats - well, I don't care about cats - but you can do what you want. A couple of auditions I have sat there and thought how I have never seen anything like it on this show. They have really put the effort in; I think it's made the show better."

He has also been very enthusiastic about the new judges saying: "It didn't feel like judges for hire. It really felt like they were interested in the show and more importantly, they were interested in the contestants. I have to credit Nick with this, he has a fantastic energy.

"People have always said to me that he's like everyone's best friend and I didn't work it out until I met him. He's like a really friendly dog, really friendly, he always wants to be stroked and be happy. There's not a bad side to him or an ego, he just really likes people and that's when I figured out what his role was on the panel."

On Rita, he said: "She belongs with The X Factor! She's been a revelation.

"I was telling some friends the other day, she's got an incredible heart, she's funny, smart, interesting and really wants the contestants to do well."

In recent years the show has been accused of becoming stale and has seen a dramatic decrease in its ratings. Various changes to the line up and minor format changes have been introduced to try and reclaim some of the magic but this year's series will see some of the most drastic changes to the show.

Allowing contestants to bring their own graphics and to put on more of the their own performance is bound to make for much more interesting viewing. As viewers, we will literally not know what to expect next and that is one of the main things that make this series very exciting.