A painfully thin looking Cheryl Cole was seen leaving her hotel en route to X-Factor auditions at the Birmingham's International Convention Centre.

Her casual outfit of tank top and flared jeans revealed her emaciated frame, which was devoid of any excess body fat.

Although the petite singer has always been slim, a picture of her taken last year in the same jeans tells the story of her weight loss following revelations of husband Ashley's cheating.

Painfully thin: Cheryl Cole reveals her emaciated frame as she stepped out in Birmingham while en route to the X Factor auditions

Cheryl and Ashley spent the weekend in Spain's Costa del Sol during a break in filming for the X Factor.

The 24-year-old was unveiled as the new judge on the hit ITV show recently and has been working hard in the lengthy auditions.

And although they appear to be making some headway in repairing their broken marriage, Cheryl's weight loss is still causing some concern.

Since revelations emerged that her Premiership footballer husband cheated on her with a hairdresser, Cheryl is believed to have dropped two dress sizes.

Same jeans, different body: Cheryl looks much thinner compared with a picture taken in the same jeans last November

A source said: 'Cheryl's weight has plummeted. She was a size ten. Now she has to buy size six outfits.

Cheryl with Ashley last year: The couple are trying to patch up their broken marriage

'She looks painfully thin and her appetite seems to have disappeared.'

The source told The News of the World: 'She's trying to move on and make a go of things with him.'

However, Cole insists that her new, slight figure is simply due to her fitness regime and that she is not 'a victim'.

She said: 'I've had to watch my weight and do rigorous workouts to keep trim.'

The Girls Aloud singer signed a reported £500,000 deal to replace outgoing judge Sharon Osbourne on the ITV talent show, joining fellow judges Louis Walsh, Simon Cowell and Dannii Minogue.

Husband Ashley is said to be upset about Cheryl's decision to take on the X Factor job and frustrated about the timing of the show, as it means he'll have to scrap his summer holiday plans with her.

A source told Closer magazine: 'He knows this is great for Cheryl's career, but his main problem is that she didn't really consult him.

'Cheryl will have a hectic schedule with live auditions throughout the summer - so that means the romantic holiday Ash had been planning is on the back-burner.

"Ashley was also hoping Cheryl would regain some of her curves on holiday  - he was going to make sure they were eating plenty of good food.

'Sometimes he can't help but say something about how skinny she's become, it's really concerned him.'

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Cheryl with her Girls Aloud bandmates at the premiere of St Trinians in October 2007