Mel C chats about her “overwhelming” experience of being a judge on the new series of The Voice Kids

Melanie C has said she “had a bit of a weep” as her time as a judge on The Voice Kids.

The Spice Girl will join Pixie Lott, Will.i.am and Danny Jones in the big red chairs when the ITV show returns over three nights later this month, replacing Paloma Faith.

The show sees aspiring singers, aged seven to 14, take to the stage in a bid to impress the famous coaching panel.

Credit: Isabel Infantes/PA

Melanie C, real name Melanie Chisholm, said she was “over the moon,” when she was asked to join the show, adding: “I have to say that the experience has actually completely surpassed my expectations in every way.

“I’ve fallen in love with everybody who works on the show and the children have impressed me in so many ways.”

She added: “My team is amazing. Obviously sitting in that big red chair it was a bit surreal on my first day.

“I did have a little bit of a weep. It was quite overwhelming.

“Being a fan of both the kids and the adults show, being in the studio, being on set, being in that big red chair, is very surreal but once those kids start singing you just go with your heart.

Credit: Isabel Infantes/PA

“Sometimes the hardest thing is not to turn and we could only pick four, so we had to be so, so choosy and my team just worked out brilliantly.

“I’ve got some incredible singers. And really special people as well. They are really humble, they don’t even realise how brilliant they are and they really look out for each other so, yeah, I love them.”

She also revealed she would have loved to have done a show like The Voice Kids when she was younger, saying:

“I think I would. When I was a kid I was dancing and singing, doing loads of drama and musical theatre at school, and I did dancing competitions.

“It wasn’t a genre that was on TV at the time but if it had been I’m sure I would’ve been queuing up to do my audition.”

The Voice Kids starts on December 27 at 7.30pm on ITV and ITV Hub.