We bet the X Factor UK contestants won’t be too happy when they find out exactly how well Simon Cowell has been treating their American counterparts.

Those who made it to the English bootcamp last week, performed and rehearsed for Gary Barlow, Tulisa, Louis Walsh and Nicole Scherzinger in a budget Holiday Inn Express hotel in Liverpool.

Meanwhile, Simon Cowell, Britney Spears, Demi Lovato and L.A. Reid have decided to put their singers up in a plush hotel, costing the show in excess of $500,000.

Around 160 hopefuls who stood out at the nationwide auditions, will be staying and performing in Miami’s exclusive Mondrian, Delano and Shore Club hotels.

An insider told The Sun: “Singers on the British version of the show will be green with envy but Cowell stumped up $500,000 putting everyone up in plush hotels in Miami for boot camp.

“He wanted to give them a taste of the celebrity lifestyle and help propel them on to great things.”

It seems that the UK judges are receiving less star treatment than their American pals too, as it was recently reported that Nicole Scherzinger complained to Cowell when she had to stump up £3,500 of her own money to upgrade her plane ticket to London to first class.

It’s a hard life.

Meanwhile, while Simon has been used to being thought of as the nastiest reality TV judge around, it seems that Britney Spears could be about to strip him of his title.

Fox president Kevin Reilly said the ‘Toxic’ hitmaker is certainly giving the British star a run for his money, explaining:

‘I think you’re going to be surprised at how feisty she is. She’s tough. She knows what she’s doing, she’s been around and she’s seen it all.’

Simon agreed with Reilly, conceding:

‘I’ve always said that the one person I wanted to bring onto the show was Britney, because I was fascinated with her as a person and as a pop star.

‘She’s a really, really good judge. And she’s quite mean, as you’ll discover.’

X Factor USA kicks off in September, while our own UK version starts in just a few weeks time. Are you excited? Leave your comments below…
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