Inside the Fame Fallout

Seven years after the curtain closed on The X Factor, Dermot O’Leary is looking back — not with regret, but with reflection. The 51-year-old Irish presenter, who became synonymous with the show during his time as host from 2007 to 2014 and again from 2016 until its final season in 2018, acknowledges the complex legacy of the talent competition that once ruled Saturday night television.

At its peak, The X Factor pulled in nearly 20 million viewers and catapulted artists like One Direction and Olly Murs to stardom. The judging panel, stacked with industry titans like Simon Cowell, Cheryl Tweedy, Sharon Osbourne, and Louis Walsh, became as much a part of pop culture as the contestants themselves. But as the years have passed, criticism has mounted — particularly around how participants were treated, both during and after the show.

O’Leary doesn’t shy away from the conversation. While acknowledging that television culture has evolved, he believes the show was largely positive during its run. “If the show was made now, it’d be made differently,” he told The Times. “The culture is different, but it was pretty much always celebratory.”

Crucially, he points to the time after contestants left the spotlight as the period most fraught with challenges. The world outside the X Factor bubble, he says, is where many former hopefuls struggled to find footing.

This issue was thrown into sharp relief following the tragic death of Liam Payne in Buenos Aires. Payne, who found fame on the show as a member of One Direction, passed away at just 31. O’Leary’s tribute to him captures the contradictions of young fame: “He was both wise and sort of a young soul at the same time.”

The tragedy has reignited questions about the duty of care not just on talent shows but across the wider music industry. O’Leary believes that while The X Factor took its responsibilities seriously, there's an ongoing need for support that extends well beyond the studio lights and live finales.

“Duty of care,” he suggests, “doesn’t end when the credits roll.”