STRICTLY Come Dancing bad boy Brendan Cole has formed a boyband with Hollyoaks and Holby City hunk Jeremy Edwards — in a bid to triumph on the Celebrity X Factor.
The long-standing friends teamed up to enter Simon Cowell’s new-look singing contest as a duo, in the hope of proving a hit with the judges and viewers.
But the move to appear on Strictly’s biggest rival is also likely to be seen as putting two fingers up to his former Beeb bosses — who axed him in early 2018 after he clashed with producers too many times.
A source said: “Brendan has a huge fanbase from Strictly, and Jeremy has been on some of the biggest soaps in the country so they’re hopeful they will go far.
“Initially it started out as a bit of a novelty idea but they’re really enjoying it and have started to feel pretty optimistic about making a mark on the show.
“They’ve already filmed their first scenes, so there’s no going back — but Strictly probably won’t be too impressed when they find out he has jumped on board with their biggest rival after all those years.”
The celebrity edition of The X Factor will air alongside an all-star edition featuring former stars later this year, as ITV and Simon bid to stem the decline in the long-running show’s ratings.
The winning star will land a record deal and a chance to fight for this year’s Christmas number one.
Brendan, 43, starred on the BBC1 dance competition for 15 series, becoming one of the best-known professionals on the show before being given the boot in January 2018 after being openly critical and clashing repeatedly with the judges.
Jeremy, 48, appeared in Hollyoaks for four years from 1995 to 1999 as Kurt Benson, before joining Holby City from 1999 to 2003. He now stars in CBBC drama Millie Inbetween, and regularly appears on TV panel shows.
