TELEVISION stars and aspiring pop singers descended on an Oxfordshire hotel to film the latest series of The X Factor.

Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue, Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne arrived at Heythrop Park, near Enstone, last week to film preliminary rounds of the show, which started at the wekend.

But for one local landlord, the show proved a nice little earner.

Chris Johnson, landlord of The Harrow Inn, Enstone, was stunned when he got a call from the production team asking him to cook for the celebrity judges.

He said: "We weren't still serving food, but then they said who they were for and we told them what was on the menu.

"They rang back ten minutes later and picked up the food at about 11pm."

He said Simon Cowell ordered steak and ale pie, Dannii Minogue a seasonal salad, and the others cod and chips and bangers and mash.

He said: "My wife cooked the food because it was the chef's day off.

"I think I made her stressed because I was telling her to get it out.

"It was a nice surprise and we obliged. We made sure that they had plenty on their plates. We wrapped them up in foil to keep them warm. They returned the plates and the cutlery later in the week. I was quite proud, it was a nice feeling - as long as they enjoyed their food.

"I'm an X Factor fan myself. We used to watch it all the time. We got a lot of contestants in that had been voted off, drowning their sorrows.

"I will be watching it to see if my meals are on telly."

Mr Johnson said the judges seemed to commute back and forth in big expensive cars or helicopters.

He said: "Heythrop Park is a huge place, I think that's why they went for it - for the seclusion. It would have been nice to get feedback and let us know what they thought of the food but they are busy people."

A staff member at The Crown Inn, Church Enstone, said they had seen several contestants, but no celebrities.

Louis Walsh, who has managed acts including Boyzone and Girls Aloud, stayed at The Kings Arms Hotel, in Woodstock, during filming.

Owner Sara Sykes said: "He was very pleasant, very approachable. We tried not to hassle him, but obviously the staff were quite pleased."

She said she did not know where the other judges were staying, but said staff saw a limousine pull up outside the hotel in the morning for Mr Walsh.

She said: "The staff said they saw Sharon Osbourne in the window."

X Factor spokesman Sara Lee confirmed filming for the show's 'boot camp' round took place at Heythrop Park.

She said: "We picked it because it could accommodate us with the number of rooms we needed and visually it looks beautiful."

The scenes shot at Heythrop Park will be aired in September.