Kylie bonds over dinner with The Voice judges

Kylie Minogue and Ricky Wilson have been out for a bonding dinner with their fellow judges on The Voice Sir Tom Jones and Will.i.am.

The Australian singer and the Kaiser Chiefs frontman have joined veteran judges Tom and Will on the panel for series three and went out for dinner to get to know each other better, the Daily Mail has said.

The judges ate at Manchester's Malmaison Hotel together the night before recording for the blind auditions began at the BBC's MediaCity Salford.

Kylie, who has replaced Jessie J on the panel, also tweeted a photo of herself at the studios with the caption: "First day at school... I mean, work! @BBCTheVoiceUK."

Ricky will be taking Danny O'Donoghue's old chair for The Voice series three, which begins screening again in spring 2014.

Emma Willis and Marvin Humes were recently announced as the new hosts, taking over from Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates.

When she joined the show, Kylie said: "I'm very excited. I love the concept of the show and have been an avid viewer of both series. Will I be competitive? Probably more than even I imagine! Watch this space!"

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix.

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.