X-Factor Shake-up!-Simon Cowell to Cheryl Cole: "This was never personal..."

Cheryl Cole is officially OUT as X-Factor Judge in the U.K. and the states! Ouch, that has to hurt.
After weeks of speculation it was confirmed yesterday that Nicole Scherzinger is replacing Cheryl Cole on 'The X Factor' in the U.S.



 Simon Cowell, the man in charge, has apologized to Cole for the chaos surrounding the judging lineup on his new talent show, but insists that she wasn't fired.
According to The Sun, Cowell takes full responsibility for the decision to replace Cole with Scherzinger, and said he did it for her own good. He said she seemed out of her depth on the U.S. show, and so producers offered her a quiet exit with the offer of returning to her old job on 'The X Factor' U.K.

"The intention was to do it quietly and say to her she had an option to rejoin the UK show. ... At the end of the day we were saying, 'Move to another show for even more money'. There was an offer of around £2.5 million on the table including bonuses. How is that [firing] someone?", Cowell says.




However, after Cole and her manager, Black Eyed Peas member will.i.am, reportedly refused to take phone calls from TV executives to discuss the option, the offer was withdrawn and the new U.K. judging lineup was announced last month--a line-up that did not include Cole.



Cowell told The Sun how he'd received a text message from Cole saying she felt let down about the U.S. show but understood it was a professional decision. He said: "I replied saying, 'This was never personal or saying you were terrible.' It wasn't that she was terrible -- she was good. I just thought she'd be happier in the U.K."


Rumors are rumbling that the last-minute signing of Paula Abdul overshadowed Cole's value to the panel and issues with  her accent and appeal or lack of appeal to the U.S. audience played heavily in the decision to replace her.

(Simon & Paula)