Sir Tom Jones has revealed his true opinions of his The Voice UK co-stars in his 2016 memoir, Over The Top And Back, including a swipe at one star as she left the programme for a rival show.
The Welsh singer, from Pontypridd, rose to fame in the 1960s and has enjoyed a career filled with chart-topping hits and sell-out tours. He was one of the first coaches to join The Voice UK when it launched on BBC One in 2012.
Candid views on original coaches
Among those alongside him was Black Eyed Peas star Will.i.am, whom Sir Tom described as possessing "the innocence of a 12-year-old child when he speaks". The singer added that the rapper and producer "uses all sorts of expressions of his own, but he speaks with enormous clarity, in fact".
He was similarly taken with Jessie J, who was also part of the original coaching panel. The 86-year-old called the Bang Bang singer a 'ballsy kid'.
Reactions to later panel members
As the third series approached, Danny O'Donoghue departed and was succeeded by Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson. Sir Tom described Ricky as the "fella I'm closest to on the show. Regular guy. No b******t."
Kylie Minogue later joined the panel, replacing Jessie J after she left the series. Sir Tom remarked: "She has a professional veneer which is there, on camera and off, which it's hard to feel you're getting behind. But it's a really nice professional veneer, she's been at it a long time."
Rita Ora's exit criticised
Kylie's tenure proved brief, and she was succeeded by Rita Ora. Despite getting along well with Sir Tom, Rita left him exasperated by her decision to move to a competing programme.
He noted: "Rita's driven like Jessie, but less hard on herself. She's having fun with it. Although, after one series of stealing both the show and the nation's hearts, she decides to sod off to The X Factor, which is a pity."
The Voice UK is set to air this evening (August 22) with a new member joining the judging panel. Kelly Rowland, best known for being part of Destiny's Child alongside Beyoncé and Michelle Williams, will sit next to Sir Tom, Danny Jones, Will.i.am and Tom Fletcher on one of the ITV show's famous red spinning chairs. Outside of Destiny's Child, Kelly has sold over 40 million records globally and is recognised for chart-topping singles such as Stole, Dilemma and Motivation.
Sir Tom received a knighthood from the late Queen in 2006, acknowledging his contributions to music.
