BEN Foden slammed The X Factor as “terrible TV” on Twitter – before signing up to sing on the Celebrity version himself.
The 34-year-old rugby ace, who split from Saturdays star Una Healy last year, even insisted the show was “on the way out”.
Ben wasn’t always such a fan of The X Factor
However, his prediction proved wrong with the show returning to the airwaves – albeit in a new celebrity-based guise – this Saturday.
It was a 2011 episode of the programme that Ben took particular exception to, tweeting: “Did Nicole Scherzinger just Meow????? Very weird???”
He added: “X factor seems to be on the way out… terrible TV.”
However, he appears to have changed his tune enough to star on the show himself, appearing in a rugby-themed group called Try Star.
Ben is singing on The X Factor with Thom Evans and Levi Davis
Ben will sing with Thom Evans, also 34, and Levi Davis, 21 – all of whom have played the sport at a national level.
Thom is known outside rugby for once being in a relationship with Kelly Brook, while Ben split up with wife Una after it was revealed he’d cheated on her.
Last year, The Sun exclusively revealed how Ben Foden had a fling with a PR girl behind Una Healys back.
The Try Star boys yesterday stripped off for photos at the 5 million mansion that contestants are calling home.
On a bed with wife Una Healey in 2017 before they split
Ben playing for England against New Zealand in 2013
The 8,000-square-foot property – dubbed Celebrity HQ – boasts stunning views of the city from virtually every room.
The X Factor: Celebrity isn’t the the first time Ben has showed off his singing skills.
He earned himself a well-deserved standing ovation when he performed John Legends All of Me on a League of Their Own in 2017.