Robbie Williams loved not being the centre of attention on 'The X Factor'.

Robbie Williams, Ayda Field, Louis Tomlinson and Simon Cowell

Robbie Williams, Ayda Field, Louis Tomlinson and Simon Cowell

The 45-year-old singer and his wife Ayda Field joined Simon Cowell and Louis Tomlinson on the judging panel of last year's series and Robbie admitted that he enjoyed the lack of pressure that came with being part of an ensemble.

He told Music Week: "Do you know what? It was really f**king great because, when you're doing a gig, you're the main focus point for tens of thousands people and you're thinking on your feet and always thinking three steps ahead, so you never get to be in the moment and enjoy it. With 'The X Factor', it's live telly - you're not the figure point and you can put your feet up, have a look around and experience what is actually going on and enjoy the energy."

Robbie also admitted he was surprised at how attached he got to the contestants.

He said: "What I didn't expect about 'The X Factor' is how deeply you fall in love with the contestants, I wasn't expecting that at all. But I liked TV, I liked how exciting it was."

However, Robbie agreed that his wife Ayda was the star of the show.

When the interviewer said: "Some would say your wife stole the show, mind," Robbie replied: "My wife steals the show every day in my house."

Robbie explained that taking the time to enjoy 'The X Factor' during the process was a treat as some of his biggest achievements, such as his three gigs at Knebworth to a crowd of over 375,000 in 2003, are a blur.

He said: "There was so much riding on my shoulders that week. I didn't experience it. I now get to experience it, like most people do that were there or not, via YouTube. But I know that it happened and it's literally the equivalent of winning the World Cup. It's like I'm a World Cup winner - that's what happened that weekend."