Olly Murs says 'The X Factor' sent him into therapy

Olly Murs has said that appearing on The X Factor ‘wasn’t a nice experience’, which saw him seeking therapy.

Former recruitment consultant Murs shot to fame on the sixth series of the show in 2009, and though he ended as runner up to Joe McElderry, his debut single Please Don’t Let Me Go hit number one.

“The X Factor wasn’t a nice experience,” he told OK! Magazine.

“It took me a few years to pluck up the courage to speak to someone.

“I only went a couple of times but talking to someone who wasn’t judgemental helped me to understand why I was reacting or feeling the way I was.”

The show also had personal consequences, after he was forced to miss his twin brother Ben’s wedding in order to participate in the show’s semi-final.

It was claimed at the time that Simon Cowell would not let Murs out of rehearsals on the day of the semi-final, despite the venue being only 16 miles away from the X Factor studios.

Murs has not spoken to his brother since, however, he reached out to him this year on their birthday.

“I did text him this year and wished him a happy birthday,” Murs went on.

“I felt it was the right time to reach out and try to ignite some kind of conversation. But it was the wrong phone number.

“It’s difficult, it’s sad and it always has been a touchy subject for me because it’s not just me and him, there are a lot of other people involved, [like] my mum.”

Murs is now a voice coach on the BBC’s X Factor rival The Voice.

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