2011: Simon Cowell Tells Tulisa to ‘Get A Grip’

X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos has reportedly been told to “get a grip” by show boss Simon Cowell.

The X Factor boss is said to be more than a little annoyed with the N-Dubz star and her fellow judges as the show’s ratings decline.

A source revealed: “To put it mildly, Simon was not pleased. The figures were the lowest for two years. He says the team need to knuckle down and get the ratings back up again.”

And Tulisa – at 23, the youngest judge ever on the show – hasn’t taken the news well.

The insider continued: “He and Tulisa have a great relationship and he loves her work, but he says they can’t take the show’s success for granted and that they all need to raise their game. As the youngest, Tulisa’s taken it pretty hard.”
The N-Duz star did little to help matters when she missed rehearsals last weekend after a night out partying, eventually turning up hung-over. Apparently “dragging herself around the set”, Tulisa didn’t win any fans from the production team.

“Tulisa is used to burning the candle at both ends,” the source told  Star magazine. “But Simon and the other producers said that she should get a grip – that work must come first.

“She has agreed to rein it in.”