Cheryl Cole quits US X Factor?

Cheryl Cole has been replaced as a judge on the new US version of The X Factor because she is homesick, it was claimed on Thursday.

The 27-year-old singer's place on the show - which debuts in September - is likely to be taken by ex-Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, according to reports.

Scherzinger, 32, was originally due to host the US X Factor alongside Welsh television presenter Steve Jones.

Celebrity website TMZ.com had reported that Cole was primarily dropped from the judging panel because producers feared the American audience would not understand her Geordie accent.
There were also concerns that the former Girls Aloud star had a "lack of chemistry" with fellow X Factor judge Paula Abdul, the website said.

But British newspaper The Sun reported that Cole was quitting the program because she was missing friends and family in Britain.

"It hasn't worked out. She's homesick and wants to return to the UK. She's had enough. Whether she ends up back on UK X Factor is open to speculation," a source on the show told the paper.

Cole was announced as a judge on the American edition of the singing talent show earlier this month after heated speculation about whether she could make it on the other side of the Atlantic.

She was due to be on the panel alongside Abdul, X Factor supremo Simon Cowell and respected former record boss LA Reid.

The move meant her leaving the British version of the hit program after three years.

Days after her new role was revealed, Cole admitted she had "stepped out of her comfort zone" to do the show in America but insisted that her strong accent would be no problem for US audiences.

She said: "Americans can always understand me. I've been here a lot, I've got a lot of American friends and we have the odd moments where they're like, 'What? What did that mean?' - you know, a phrase.

"But I think that it's going to be something that people get used to. And I'm proud of my accent."

Cowell joked at the time that Cole could mime to someone else's voice to get round any accent problems.

"We could do it like Singing In The Rain - just have someone behind a wall just talking and she's got to lip-sync the whole show."