Olly Murs confesses his time on The Voice left him suffering from depression and panic attacks as he wishes he could ‘relive X Factor glory days’

Olly Murs has revealed he does not want his fame to end and wishes he could relive his glory days on the X-Factor – despite his time as judge leaving him suffering from depression and panic attacks.

The That Girl singer, 40, finished runner-up to Joe McElderry on the X Factor in 2009 and went on to act as a judge on the talent show in 2015 before joining The Voice as a coach from 2018 to 2023.

But reflecting on his career, Olly told Auto Trader’s Show On The Road podcast: ‘People always say I’d love to go back to school again and relive them school years.

‘For me it would be X Factor again. I just loved the thrill of it. I was on the cusp of changing my life.

‘And on the cusp of something great really special and something unique that no one in Whittam or anyone in my life, my family or my friends had ever experienced before.

Olly Murs has confessed his time on The Voice left him suffering from depression and panic attacks and he wishes he could ‘relive his X Factor glory days’

Olly told Auto Trader’s Show On The Road podcast: ‘People always say I’d love to go back to school again and relive them school years. For me it would be X Factor again. I just loved the thrill of it. I was on the cusp of changing my life’

‘It was extraordinary. A guy from Essex that lived on a council estate ends up being on the biggest TV show in the country. Knowing I might get a record deal or have an album.

‘And then the reality of the show finishing and everywhere I went, people knew who I was, it was crazy. Sometimes there’s part of me that when I’m out with Amelia [his wife], the last thing I want to do is be noticed.

‘But someone said to me, you’ll be annoyed when people stop asking, because you’ll know then your career’s over.

‘So I embrace it. But that experience, that thrill, it was a rollercoaster of emotions and I’ll never get close to that experience ever again.’

The Troublemaker singer welcomed his first child, a daughter called Madison, in April with his personal trainer wife, Amelia, who he married last year.

Olly was booted off The Voice after six years on the show and his fellow panellist, Tom Jones, told the Mail that his close friend was ‘really bothered’ to no longer be on the hit ITV programme.

At the time, Olly revealed his departure wasn’t amicable as it was thought the decision came from producers wanting to attract younger audiences by signing new judges.

Tom said: ‘We’ve both been on the road, but when it happened we talked quite a bit. He didn’t want to leave, he loved doing the show.

The singer admitted he chooses to welcome fame as he added: ‘So I embrace it. But that experience, that thrill, it was a rollercoaster of emotions and I’ll never get close to that experience ever again’

The Troublemaker singer welcomed his first child, a daughter called Madison, in April with his personal trainer wife, Amelia, who he married last year

Olly was booted off The Voice after six years on the show and his fellow panellist, Tom Jones, told the Mail that his close friend was ‘really bothered’ to no longer be on the hit ITV programme

‘It really bothered him, he didn’t like it. He’s married now and has a kid, so his life has changed. But it definitely bothered him.’

In 2015, Olly found himself at the centre of X Factor fix claims when he announced that Monica Michael was leaving the competition after mistaking the number of judges who had chosen to send her home before the results of the deadlock round were officially announced.

He left the show and then was hired by The Voice but the idea of returning to a judging panel filled him with dread.

The Dear Darlin’ singer told Auto Trader’s podcast: ‘I felt like the worst news that could ever happen to me. I had a massive panic attack over it.

‘I know what I went through was nothing compared to what other people go through. But mentally at the time, I was freaked out.

‘I wondered, going back on TV again, was I going to make a mistake? …

‘Because that’s all I got when I did X Factor, I was told you’re useless, you’re not good, you’re not a great presenter, you’re not this, you’re not that.

In 2015, Olly found himself at the centre of X Factor fix claims when he announced that Monica Michael was leaving the competition after mistaking the number of judges who had chosen to send her home (pictured with Caroline Flack in 2015)

He added: ‘It was extraordinary. A guy from Essex that lived on a council estate ends up being on the biggest TV show in the country. Knowing I might get a record deal or have an album’ (pictured on the X Factor performing with Robbie Williams)

‘Don’t get me wrong, there were loads of positives too, but I just got loads of hate.I wasn’t sure I could do it. So that’s when I went and saw a therapist and had some meetings with this lovely lady.

‘I did about two or three sit downs and it helped me so much. It helped me so much I was ready to get back in the firing line again.

‘One of the things I learnt was how to cope and understand how I was feeling. She gave me these techniques on how to deal with that other voice in your head that’s like telling you you can’t do this, run away.

‘When I figured it out, that’s what changed everything. So I sat in the red chair at The Voice and I was petrified the first day.

‘So I told myself you’re great at what you do. You’re really good on TV. You’ve got it. You’ve got this, Olly. You’ve got this.

‘And it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I loved it. I did it for seven years. And it was what I needed. It was brilliant.’