Simon Cowell will make an appearance on this year's UK X Factor in some shape or form.

The media mogul took a step back from his show in 2011 as he left his judging seat to spend time with the US version of the show.

Gary Barlow replaced him on the judging panel as the line-up enjoyed a somewhat different look than previous years.

Speaking to the Guardian however, X Factor producer Richard Holloway said that Cowell will rear his head during the series. He said:

"Simon will appear in some guise somewhere."

The producer was asked for more details, to which he replied: "That would be giving it away, wouldn't it...That's all I'm prepared to say...It's not a hologram."

Holloway meanwhile believes that tapping into modern day technology could help the series increase its popularity. He said:

"I've got some thoughts in terms of that in the future, especially with all the technology we have and YouTube and Google and Skype. There are ways we should be exploring making these shows even more personal. Bringing the people at home into the show, there's a rich vein there."