Cheryl and Simon’s mission: to lead The Voice a merry dance

THOUSANDS of wannabes will queue up to audition in TV talent shows this autumn but there are only going to be two contestants – The Voice and Simon Cowell’s new dance show. The launch of The Greatest Dancer, Simon’s BBC offering, has been delayed until early next year in order to go head-tohead with its ITV rival. And with the help of his old chum and ‘secret weapon’ Cheryl, left, Cowell is determined to wipe the floor with ITV in the biggest ratings battle since The Voice faced off against Britain’s Got Talent in 2012. His show will be the Beeb’s prime time Saturday night offering after being scheduled to launch in January. A spy tells me: ‘This is one of the biggest challenges of Simon’s career – and he loves a challenge.

‘He and his team think they might have just come across a gem with The Greatest Dancer. It’s fresh and he is over the moon to have Cheryl on board. She could very well be his secret weapon.’

Last time Simon, 58, went up against The Voice, whose judges this year included Olly Murs and Sir Tom Jones, he beat the show handsdown. In 2012 Britain’s Got Talent attracted 9.3 million viewers compared to his rival’s 8.4 million. I can’t wait for a rematch…