Cheryl Cole Didn’t See ‘X Factor’ Axe Coming… Or Did She?

Cheryl Cole is reportedly seething after being dumped by Simon Cowell as a judge on the American version of ‘The X Factor’. “She is completely shocked and stunned. She never saw this coming at all,” a friend of the Girls Aloud star told The Sun. “The fact that Simon didn’t tell her in person hurt. She never thought he would do that to her.”

But an insider in Cowell’s camp says that’s hogwash. “Cheryl can hardly say this was a total shock. She actually knew about it three days ago,” the source said. “Simon told her in person at his house that it wasn’t working and that he was under so much pressure to release her. She knows she has been nervous in her performances and TV execs were privately concerned.”