Cheryl Cole exchanges words with fellow X Factor judge Simon Cowell

Sparks fly between X Factor judges Cheryl Cole and Simon Cowell when he brands her a "brat" in the new series of the TV talent show, which starts tonight.

When he catches her pulling faces at him, he tells her: "You're a childish little brat."

The pair also exchange words backstage and Cole admits she is missing Dannii Minogue after she is left on the judges panel in London with Cowell and Louis Walsh.

Guest judge Geri Halliwell steps in for Minogue on the Glasgow show.

The annual competition returns for its seventh series with its trademark mixture of the tone-deaf, the talented and a host of sob stories from hopeful contestants.

Among the potential stars already identified is Gamu Nhengu, an 18-year-old student who left her native Zimbabwe for Scotland five years ago. Her version of Katrina and the Waves' Walking On Sunshine wows the judges with Simon Cowell praising her "old school jazz voice".

Not everyone does so well and one tuneless trio in London leaves the judges stunned into silence with a performance that the show's creator Cowell describes afterwards as "possibly the worst group we've ever had on this show".

Other potential stars include a singing waitress and a devoted Freddie Mercury fan who is given a rare second chance after her attempt to sing like her hero falls flat.

• The new series of 'The X Factor' begins tonight at 7:30pm on ITV1.