'X Factor' cancels live audiences at the last minute

By Madeleine Marr7/26/2012

Rabid fans hoping to get a glimpse of pop stars-turned-judges Demi Lovato and Britney Spears at the two X Factor tapings at the Fillmore Miami Beach were plum out of luck Thursday.

One was set for 1 p.m., the other 5:45 p.m.; both were a wash. For unknown reasons as of press time, producers decided to nix the live-audience feature early Thursday morning and sent an email notification out to ticket holders at 2 a.m., long after most Web surfers had gone to bed. Participants who showed up as early as 10 a.m. were given the bad news to head back home.

Others who phoned ahead to the venue were spared the hassle and humiliation: “We regret to announce that the ‘X Factor’ tapings for this afternoon have been canceled. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused,’’ says a recorded announcement at The Fillmore. Rejected audience members took to the OCA http://on-camera-audiences.com/shows/The_X_Factor to voice their displeasure. A Fox spokeswoman Alex Gillespie said: "Due to changes in production, the live audience portion of THE X FACTOR Boot Camp was canceled."

Maybe Britney partied it up the night before and they didn't want prying eyes of her hungover face? Just thinking out loud here.