X Factor presenter Dermot O’Leary has backed Simon Cowell’s decision to save John and Edward Grimes on last week’s show.

O’Leary admitted that he was initially shocked when he heard Simon wasn’t saving Lucie Jones, but when he stopped to think he realised that Simon had made the right call.

In his News Of The World column O’Leary said:

Well, when Mr C opted to send Lucie home and thus take the show into deadlock, like most of you, my jaw was on the floor.

I couldn’t believe it. He’s been laying into them for the last five weeks and then, given a golden opportunity to get rid of them, he doesn’t take it.

Now I can see how a cynic might think Simon had his own hidden reasons for doing that, but I think his motives were above board and straightforward.

He said he didn’t believe either act could win the competition, so he went with who he and, in his opinion, the public would rather see perform again the following week, something that was backed up by the actual voting figures because Lucie received the fewest.

And no, I’m not saying that just because he’s my boss! I genuinely think in his mind he believed, and still believes, the decision he made was sound.