It's been five years since The X Factor was axed but according to ITV boss Kevin Lygo 'it's not gone away forever'.
The ITV show was responsible for launching the career of some of the music industries biggest bands and solo artists including One Direction, Little Mix and Leona Lewis.
But speaking at the Broadcasting Press Guild the ITV programming boss said: “I suspect X Factor has not gone away forever. Never say never.
“It was our most successful show for almost 20 years and we’re still working with Simon on a daily basis.”
The TV boss compared the move to the reaction over ITV’s Big Brother reboot adding: “People thought that Big Brother would never come back but we were overwhelmed by the response when we announced it.”
Meanwhile media mogul Simon Cowell whose production company Syco produced the show, hasn't ruled out the return.
Since axing The X Factor after a 17 year run he has been freed up to spend much time with his young son Eric and American wife Lauren Silverman.
But Cowell has since admitted that there is still a place for 'the extra platform' that the show offered music hopefuls and he is 'approached in the street' by a new generation of fans who have grown up watching the show's recordings.
He told The Sun: “They all watch it on YouTube. When we stopped the show, I genuinely thought there was no need for it — that everyone would be signed from YouTube.
“But there are so many people wanting to be signed that we could use that extra platform.”
And although a come back could be on the cards he said the format of a reboot would have to be different to create 'TV moments that live forever'.
He added: “There would have to be a genuine opportunity to make it how it was in the early years, and I would only do it with someone who was genuinely enthusiastic about it.
“I would also bring back the managers and the [artists and repertoire] people instead of having artists judge the talent because I don’t think that’s great.”
