ITV officials have addressed Tom Jones’s exit from The Voice UK following his claims that he was fired from the line-up.
Earlier this week, the It’s Not Unusual singer addressed reports of a coaching shake-up on the singing competition and claimed he was fired from the show.
A representative for the ITV network addressed his exit on Friday as they confirmed that pop star Cheryl and rapper Aitch will join returning coaches Kelly Rowland and will.i.am in the revolving red chairs.
“ITV would like to thank the irreplaceable Sir Tom Jones for all his years on The Voice UK, and the countless incredible and unforgettable moments he gave the show,” they said in a statement. “He has brought joy to audiences, and to every singer who performed for him and with him.”
They also thanked departing presenter Emma Willis and judges Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones for their “brilliant contributions” to the show and wished them “the very best of luck as they embark on their next chapters”.
The new line-up, featuring TV personalities Stacey Solomon and Alesha Dixon as presenters, began filming the 15th season in Manchester on Friday, with the show set to air next year.
Earlier this week, Jones claimed that he “did not want to leave” The Voice and that “financial difficulty with insurance” was given as the reason for his exit.
He alleged that he had been offered a “much reduced role” where he would make an appearance without being involved from the start, and he was “not thrilled about that”.
“So the only thing I know right now, is that there’s never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who’s still pretty good at his job,” he added.
Since the singing competition’s inception in 2012, the Welsh legend has been on the coaching line-up. However, he was previously dropped before the 2015 season, a decision he called “very disappointing” at the time, before being reinstated for the next series.
