Weeks spent dishing out frank assessments of performers’ live singing ability mean Cheryl Cole’s own voice has a lot to live up to.

Last night she ruled out the possibility of anyone finding fault by miming parts of her X Factor performance.

After initially denying that she had mimed any of the song, show insiders finally admitted that she may not have sung every single note.

The main event: Cheryl Cole performed her new single Promise on tonight's X Factor, wearing a sexy combo of an ivory jacket with black bandage strips wrapped all the way up her legs

Fans were a little more black and white. They took to the internet to say they were convinced that the Girls Aloud singer mimed her vocals during last night’s performance.

What fans at home were not told is that her entire performance was recorded before the show started. It appeared to viewers that she was performing the song live. But in reality her routine had been recorded in front of the studio audience about an hour before the show began.

The performance represented Miss Cole's singing comeback coming just three months after she nearly died from malaria.

The 27-year-old was given a massive platform to promote her new single Promise This and the new album on last night's show.

Tricks of the trade: But the singer appeared to be miming parts of the track, which she pre-recorded an hour before the show went on air

The real star of the show: She was surrounded by an army of backing dancers as she stepped from behind the judges desk to take centre stage

Given how stricken the singer was in the summer the performance still represented an amazing comeback for the star.

She was given a rapturous applause from the studio audience and looked to be relieved to have completed her return when she finished the song.

Miss Cole donned a white jacket, stripey stockings, a tutu and boots for the routine and was joined by an army of dancers as she jumped around the stage.

With her hair dyed red she was surrounded by dancers in black suits with kipper ties who were seen praying behind her for the routine.

All in a day's work: She was given a rapturous applause from the studio audience and looked to be relieved to have completed her return when she finished the song

Excuses, excuses: ITV claimed the decision to pre-record the show was made as it was impractical for Miss Cole to carry out her judging duties if she was also singing on the show

Her performance came on the same show that singer John Adeleye become the latest contestant to be voted off.

The wannabee pop star who was being mentored by Louis Walsh suffered after his routine came under fire for a distracting dance performance on Saturday night.

ITV claimed the decision to pre-record the show was made as it was impractical for Miss Cole to carry out her judging duties if she was also singing on the show. They did the same when she performed Fight For This Love on the show last year.

Friendly chat: Cheryl speaks to host Dermot O'Leary after her high-energy routine and breaths a sigh of relief

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Cheryl Cole gave a clear indication she's well on the road to recovery as she was pictured yesterday for the first time since contracting malaria.

Wearing not a scrap of make-up with her hair hanging loose, the 27-year-old smiled at photographers as she picked up a coffee from her local Starbucks in Surrey.

Wearing jeans, an off-the-shoulder white jumper and lace vest, the fresh-faced singer looked thrilled to be out in the fresh air again following nearly a month in bed.

The smile that says 'I'm on the mend': Cheryl Cole was pictured for the first time in a month yesterday as she picked up a Starbucks in Surrey

Looking noticeably fuller in the face and a healthier size compared to her increasingly skinny frame in recent months, it appeared Mrs Cole has been enjoying home-cooked meals from her mother Joan Callaghan, who has been assisting her daughter's recovery.

Clearly in a sociable mood after so many weeks recuperating, the star was more than happy to chat to fans and pose for photographs in the coffee shop.

Last night, her spokesman said she wouldn't be going back to work for a few weeks yet, but said her friends and family were 'pleased she is up and about'.

Mrs Cole left hospital two weeks ago to recuperate at her Surrey mansion, which she used to share with estranged footballer husband Ashley.

Low-key: Cheryl looked relaxed in a pair of jeans, white vest, jumper and flip-flops

Back to normality: Cole was in good spirits as she chats to the barista and fellow customers at the counter

Her fellow X Factor judge and friend Simon Cowell revealed recently she was 'bored out of her mind' taking it easy at home.

The Girls Aloud singer was diagnosed with malaria a few days after she collapsed at a photoshoot on July 3.

She was originally diagnosed with severe exhaustion, but doctors soon found out she had contracted the plasmodium falciparum strain of the parasite - one of the deadliest forms of malaria.

It is believed the pop star was bitten by an infected mosquito while on holiday to Tanzania with close friend American dancer Derek Hough in June.

After falling ill, she was forced to cancel her appearance at the Manchester live auditions of the new series of the X Factor and the boot camp stage, where she was replaced by Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger.

Bouncing back: Despite her recent health troubles, Cole looked happy to pose for photos with fans

I'm free! Mrs Cole was no doubt thrilled to be out of the house after weeks in bed

Cole's PR denied reports on Tuesday that Cole was worried about her future on the X Factor over fears Scherzinger would replace her full-time.

While Cole is hoping to be well enough to take part in the judges' houses section of X Factor - when Dannii Minogue is expecting to return from maternity leave - she has pulled out of her performance at the V Festival next month.

Speaking earlier this month, Cowell explained: 'I've had a few text messages from her over the last few days.

On the mend: Mrs Cole is hoping to be better to film the judges houses section of X Factor in late August

'It was serious and she was ill - we didn't realise how ill. But judging by the text messages I've had, she is definitely looking forward to getting back to work.

'I think our job is to make sure she doesn't come back too quick because I think she's bored out of her mind and going crazy.'

He added: 'The texts are getting increasingly feisty so she's on the mend!'

Healthier: Mrs Cole appeared to have filled out compared to her gaunt appearance at the Glamour Women Of The Year Awards last month

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(PEOPLE.com) -- It's been a rough year for Cheryl Cole. Not only did the Brit file for divorce in May from her husband of four years, but now she's been stricken with malaria.

So just who is this woman whose name's been floating around the Web recently? And how did she get a disease that hasn't afflicted Westerners since they dug the Panama Canal?

Cole rose to U.K. fame in 2002 after becoming a member of pop group Girls Aloud. In 2008, she joined Simon Cowell as one of the judges of "X Factor," a British singing competition. She's also been noted for her style, gracing the covers of British Vogue, Elle and Harper's Bazaar. Last year, she became the new face of L'Oreal.

But the British beauty, 27, who will be the opening act for select European dates of the Black Eyed Peas' E.N.D. World Tour, collapsed Saturday during a photo shoot for her album.

A spokesperson says she's being treated in a London hospital for malaria, a mosquito-borne disease typically spread in tropical areas. Cole reportedly just returned from a trip to Tanzania, had to cancel all work this week.

Malaria, which is preventable to those who are immunized and curable, has been all but eradicated in the developed countries, but still plagues other parts of the world. The World Health Organization says nearly 1 million people died of malaria in 2008, mostly African children.

See full article at PEOPLE.com.

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