The Voice EXCLUSIVE: 'Simon ain't gonna be happy when he watches it!' Olly Murs declares his new TV gig is 'the best show I've worked on' in savvy dig at ex-boss Cowell and The X Factor

Published: 21:30 GMT, 3 January 2018 | Updated: 22:35 GMT, 3 January 2018

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He made his name on The X Factor and has now come full circle and scooped a role as a coach on The Voice.

But Olly Murs' new position now pits him directly against the rival ITV singing series that made him famous - and his old mentor and boss Simon Cowell.

Yet Olly, 33, isn't backwards about coming forwards when it comes to discussing the difference between the two reality contests - proudly declaring that The Voice is 'the best show I've worked on for a fact'.

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'Simon ain't gonna be happy when he watches it!' Olly Murs has declared his new TV gig on The Voice is 'the best show I've worked on' in savvy dig at ex-boss Cowell and The X Factor

'When The Voice came calling I knew it was right,' he said. 'Simon will definitely watch it when it's back on [this Saturday] and he ain't gonna be happy!'

The You Don't Know Love singer also revealed that his career choices are nothing to do with Simon - who has not been in touch with him about his new role.

'Ever since I left The X Factor I have made my own decisions,' Olly said. 'And I haven’t heard from Simon. But he knows where I am. He has my number if he wants to call me. He probably won't though.'

Olly appeared on The X Factor originally as a contestant in 2009, where he got through to the finale and came second to Joe McElderry.

Incommunicado: The You Don't Know Love singer also revealed that his career choices are nothing to do with Simon - who has not been in touch with him about his new role

He returned to the show often afterwards, having still been offered a record deal by Simon and carving out a successful pop career.

He was recruited to host the sister show, The Xtra Factor, with Caroline Flack in both 2011 and 2012.

He then returned again with her to present the main show in it's 2015 season, while Dermot O'Leary took a year out. This ended somewhat sourly after one or two faux pas during the live shows - namely the time he announced contestant Monica Michael was axed from the show before the result had been decided yet.

It's back: will.i.am, Jennifer Hudson, Sir Tom Jones, Emma Willis and Olly attended the official season launch on Wednesday in London

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But the singer seems more in his comfort zone now he's a coach, having put presenting to the side; and on the new season of The Voice, he will be seen performing with his co-judges will.i.am, Sir Tom Jones and Jennifer Hudson - something he says The X Factor lacks.

'I’d like to see Simon get up and do that!' he joked.

While it's true that the current line-up of X Factor judges only features one singer [Nicole Scherzinger] while the rest are all music managers [Simon, Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne], Olly was also sure to point out that the judges on The Voice aren't actually judging.

'We aren’t judging we are coaching. We are not going to say to someone "you’re rubbish". We are much more constructive.

'We aren’t being mean or horrible. We are trying to help [the contestants].'

Like a fish to water: The singer seems more in his comfort zone now he's a coach, having put presenting to the side

Contact-less: Olly's new position now pits him directly against the rival ITV singing series that made him famous - and his old mentor and boss Simon Cowell

Of his role as the show's newbie, Olly also said that he looks to his co-coaches for reassurance.

'If they all didn’t turn [in their seats at an audition] then it gives me confidence in my decision not to turn,' he said.

Olly's fellow judges seem to agree with his opinions on the way The Voice treats its contestants.

'I don’t watch X Factor. So I just can’t compare the two,' Jennifer admitted 'But the knowledge you can learn from The Voice is priceless because of the relationship you get to have with your coach.

'I wish I’d had that priceless coach relationship when I started out. The Voice is truly about the talent. There are few platforms that acknowledges true talent.'

Bump in the road: Olly returned with Caroline Flack to present The X Factor in it's 2015 season, while Dermot O'Leary took a year out. This ended somewhat sourly after one or two faux pas during the live shows

What a song and dance: The new season of The Voice, he will be seen performing with his co-judges will.i.am, Sir Tom Jones and Jennifer Hudson - something he says The X Factor lacks

Sir Tom concurred: 'The Voice is a great platform for any singer. If you can get on this show you’ve already won. If I was starting out then I’d be on it like a shot.'

Agreeing with this, will.i.am said: 'If this was a farmer competition then our show is the fruit and the other shows are the boxes. And who wants to see the mother-f**king boxes? And our contestants are the juicy oranges!'

Of the new season, he added: 'We are not about making fun of folks who kind of want to sing but don’t really get it. This is a family show. It;s well balanced. It's the best show on TVs, phones, tablets, whatever. With all the stuff happening in the world this is a great escape.'

Of new coach Olly, he said: 'Olly is owning it. Out of seven seasons this is the best one. Everything seems right from top to bottom.'

The Voice returns to ITV on Saturday from 8PM.