Has Simon Cowell just confirmed Louis Walsh’s X Factor exit?

Show insider says it’s 95% certain that Walsh won't be part of the judges' panel this year

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Published: Monday, 11th May 2015 at 8:39 am

Has Simon Cowell just waved goodbye to X Factor judge Louis Walsh via the medium of Twitter? It certainly seems that way. This morning the music mogul tweeted to his followers:

Louis Walsh is one of the good guys. We will always be friends. The door remains open and who knows what's next…….

— Simon Cowell (@SimonCowell) May 11, 2015

Cowell has form for this kind of thing, having sent a similar message when then judge Nicole Scherzinger left in 2014. He also posted a message on the social media site when Dermot O’Leary stepped down as host, saying they would work together again.

Walsh, as ever, has been pretty frank about his time on the show being up. A show insider tells us – regardless of Cowell’s tweet – that he “hasn’t officially gone” but “it’s 95% certain that he’s going”.

The source added: “It’s very unlikely that he’ll do this series, but until we’ve got the panel lined-up, who knows what could happen. Louis has been great for the series, but we’re looking at refreshing every aspect of it and that includes the panel.”

Radio 1 DJ Nick Grimshaw’s name has joined the growing list of rumoured new faces. “I think he’s been discussed, but I don’t know how much it’s going to be pursued,” the show insider says. “It might be; it might not be.”

Ria Ora won’t be joining the X Factor judging panel this year