Celebrity X Factor bosses are currently experiencing a language barrier nightmare after signing up a Latin American girlband who don’t actually speak much English.
As producers hunted for global talent to impress Simon Cowell, they failed to take on board the massive communication issued the Spanish speakers would encounter.
The band, known as “The Influencers”, consists of five girls named Sofia, Alondra, Laura, Natalie and Wendii, all from Puerto Rican, Colombian, Cuban, American and Brazilian backgrounds.
Between them, they have more than 11 million followers and are already dreaming of being the next big girl band on the scene.
While they are all able to sing competently in English, they speak very little conversationally.
According to The Sun, the language issues have become a “nightmare” for the show’s support staff.
A source said: “The girls are incredibly talented, there’s no doubt why the producers wanted to sign them for this series. They will blow everyone away.
“The only problem is that while they can sing perfectly in English, they are not that comfortable with the language.
“Simple things like getting them in the right place at the right time can be tricky so, frustratingly, everything takes that bit longer than it should.”
It is claimed the girls will have some emergency English lessons if they manage to get through to the live shows, where they will face questions from host Dermot O’Leary as well as the judges.
However, speaking to The Sun, another inside source claimed there were no issues with communications, noting that there had been previous contestants for whom English was not a first language.
The Mirror has contacted Celebrity X Factor reps for comment.
Celebrity X Factor is set to air on ITV on October 12, 2019, shortly after Britain’s Got Talent: The Champions comes to an end.
Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh will return as judges alongside Nicole Scherzinger who replaces Sharon Osbourne.
The Influencers will be going head to head with contestants including ex Strictly pro Brendan Cole, news broadcaster Martin Bashir and reality star Meghan Barton-Hansen.
Love Islanders Zara McDermott , Eyal Brooker, Wes Nelson and Samira Mighty will be competing as a group, alongside rugby trio Ben Foden, Thom Evans and Levi Davis.
Other stars expected to take part include former Glee actor Kevin McHale, ex-Eastenders star Jonny Labey, actress and singer/songwriter Olivia Olson, TV chat show host Ricki Lake and model Hayley Hasslehoff.
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