X Factor contestants not allowed to talk about Simon Cowell or other judges

The contestants on the show are being put under strict gagging contracts which means they are not able to discuss any of the show's past or present judges or hosts.

The Sun newspaper claims they aren't even allowed to post pictures on their social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter or talk about how they did on the show.

The contract adds that if anybody breaches the contract then the producer TalkbackThames 'and/or Related Parties or any other interested party may need to commence legal proceedings'.

According to UK newspaper The Sun, one contestant said: 'It was the most frightening thing I've seen. I was worried that I couldn't even tell my mum how I'd done.

'We were told that unless you signed the form you weren't allowed to go do the show. They were saying that it was important the element of surprise was kept in there and that we didn't just blab everything.

'I could understand that but it has put people on edge as we're mainly kids - we don't understand legal jargon.'