BGT's Simon Cowell reveals crippling secret battle that forced him to leave A-list bash
SIMON Cowell admits he's "socially inept" and has revealed the unexpected bonus that his TV shows have given him which has helped him through his shyness.
Cowell, 65, said he desperately struggles to make small talk and told how he became so stressed at Joan Collins's party that he had to leave just half an hour after sitting at the table.
5
5
The BGT judge revealed that becoming recognised as the man behind hit shows like American Idol, The X Factor, and Britain's Got Talent, had helped him.
He admitted that it made it easier for him to have conversations as people would talk about the programmes and their stars - topics he felt comfortable chatting about.
Speaking on Elizabeth Day's How To Fail podcast, Cowell said: "I am very shy - like I can't go to a pre-party.
"It's my worst thing in the world - making small talk with people I don't know.
"If we have a common subject I'm pretty good.
"But years ago, if I had to go to a party, particularly if you have to stand up with a drink, with horrible food, and just talk to people you don't know, it's torture.
"So once I was known by people it was kind of good because it broke the ice with people you meet, so instantly they know you, you're talking about something I like, which is the shows or the artists or whatever.
"So it kind of helped me with my shyness."
Cowell, engaged to Lauren Silverman, with whom he has a son Eric aged 11, added: "But still now Lauren is brilliant in these positions. I'm hopeless.
"Joan Collins had a birthday party, and I'm 'How do I get out of it? I can't.'
BGT's Simon baffled fans as he SLAMS semi-final act - despite putting them through
"And I said to Lauren 'I'll go, but we have to time it, because there'll be a horrible stand-up pre-drinks'. I can't do that.
"At the same time, Joan is a diva, and if you're late she'll kill me, so I'm trying to balance everything.
"I think we've timed it well - we didn't. For 45 minutes I had to talk to people and I was dying inside.
"I was so stressed by the time I got to the table, I left after about 30 minutes, because I just can't deal with it. Draining."
Describing it as one of his failures, Cowell admitted: "That is one of them. I am socially inept."
Simon's famously blunt feedback, which sometimes crossed the line of being harsh to the contestants, made him a household name in the world of Talent shows.
The TV personality wasn't afraid to tell the singing hopefuls that they sounded like 'garbage,' that they had 'no talent' or that their audition was a 'complete and utter waste of time' - all of which are direct quotes he had said to the contestants at some point.
He became a fan favourite due to his lovable charm and sharp sense of humour.
Many fans seemed to agree with Simon's critique of the singers making him beloved and one of the leading talent scouts in the music industry of the past two decades.
5
5
5
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
33 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Patsy Kensit admits real reason she turned down Real Housewives of London as full cast line-up is revealed
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ACTRESS Patsy Kensit has revealed the real reason she turned down appearing on Real Housewives of London after being linked to joining the cast. Rumours were afloat that the legendary actress could be giving the London-based spin-off a go but she failed to be announced as part of the programme's cast for the Hayu original series. Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 4 Patsy Kensit has revealed why she turned down The Real Housewives of London Credit: Getty 4 The actress confirmed to The Sun she was approached for the show Credit: Getty 4 The line-up of ladies has since been revealed Credit: Getty Now, in an exclusive interview with The Sun, Patsy has confirmed that she was lined up be one of the Housewives but turned the programme down for a key reason. Speaking to The Sun at the British Soap Awards, where she presented one of the night's top prizes, Patsy revealed: "I did have a meeting with them. "I live in my little flat in West Hampstead with my cat. My sons have flown the nest. "I don't think my lifestyle would stand up to these women - I wouldn't fit with them. "But I'm a huge fan and I love the show. I think the whole franchise is just phenomenal. "Dawn Ward [Cheshire Housewife] is one of my favourites, I am a superfan of hers!" The Sun first revealed that Patsy had been in talks with show bosses earlier this year before the final cast for the UK's latest spin-off of the American franchise was revealed. A TV insider said at the time: 'The Real Housewives Of London is not about celebrities, but Patsy is typical of the calibre of people the producers are targeting. "She's an exception worth making in this case." The full line-up was unveiled just days later with a slew of stars with A-list connections confirmed to be on the bill. Patsy Kensit faces heartache after a 'tumultuous' split from her property tycoon fiance Patric Cassidy Karen Loderick-Peace will be returning to the franchise having previously appeared on another UK spin-off of the show in 2020, The Real Housewives of Jersey. Millionaire mogul Amanda Cronin is also one of the six ladies alongside former Ladies of London star Juliet Angus. J-Lo's pal Panthea Parker and Bake Off: The Professionals star Nessie Welschinger will also be letting fans into their lavish lives. Aussie socialite and model, Juliet Mayhew, who now lives in London, completes the line-up. 4 Patsy dished all at the British Soap Awards Credit: The Mega Agency
The Sun
34 minutes ago
- The Sun
Patsy Kensit admits real reason she turned down Real Housewives of London as full cast line-up is revealed
ACTRESS Patsy Kensit has revealed the real reason she turned down appearing on Real Housewives of London after being linked to joining the cast. Rumours were afloat that the legendary actress could be giving the London-based spin-off a go but she failed to be announced as part of the programme's cast for the Hayu original series. 4 4 4 Now, in an exclusive interview with The Sun, Patsy has confirmed that she was lined up be one of the Housewives but turned the programme down for a key reason. Speaking to The Sun at the British Soap Awards, where she presented one of the night's top prizes, Patsy revealed: "I did have a meeting with them. "I live in my little flat in West Hampstead with my cat. My sons have flown the nest. "I don't think my lifestyle would stand up to these women - I wouldn't fit with them. "But I'm a huge fan and I love the show. I think the whole franchise is just phenomenal. The Sun first revealed that Patsy had been in talks with show bosses earlier this year before the final cast for the UK's latest spin-off of the American franchise was revealed. "She's an exception worth making in this case." The full line-up was unveiled just days later with a slew of stars with A-list connections confirmed to be on the bill. Patsy Kensit faces heartache after a 'tumultuous' split from her property tycoon fiance Patric Cassidy Karen Loderick-Peace will be returning to the franchise having previously appeared on another UK spin-off of the show in 2020, The Real Housewives of Jersey. Millionaire mogul Amanda Cronin is also one of the six ladies alongside former Ladies of London star Juliet Angus. J-Lo's pal Panthea Parker and Bake Off: The Professionals star Nessie Welschinger will also be letting fans into their lavish lives. Aussie socialite and model, Juliet Mayhew, who now lives in London, completes the line-up.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Michelin restaurant guide ‘racist and Eurocentric'
The Michelin restaurant guide is racist, Eurocentric and elitist, academics are claiming. The famous guide, first published by the French tyre company in 1900, now covers more than 30 countries and has racked up sales of more than 30 million copies. Its rating system of stars – one star for high quality cooking, two for excellence, and the celebrated three stars for exceptional cuisine – are coveted by restaurateurs across the world. Many cooks regard it as the ultimate honour and starred chefs, such as Gordon Ramsay and Heston Blumenthal, have often become celebrities in their own right. In the most recent version of the Great Britain and Ireland guide, which contains 1,147 restaurants, 220 are starred, including the first Greek restaurant to be awarded one, an AngloThai eatery and a Korean restaurant. Two West African restaurants in London's Fitzrovia were awarded stars in 2024. But despite some variety within the guides, critics argue that Michelin's approach is generally 'parochial' and that it ignores 'huge swathes of the world'. These omissions may be down to racism, suggests Tulasi Srinivas, a professor of anthropology, religion and transnational studies at Emerson College, in Boston. 'There is no Michelin Guide in India, one of the world's greatest and oldest cuisines, or in Africa with its multiplicity of cultural flavours. Perhaps a side of racism with the boeuf bourguignon?' she wrote in a blog on the website The Conversation. Instead of promoting restaurants in other parts of the world, she criticises the 'inherently elitist' guide for celebrating 'obscure' European gastronomic processes such as 'fire cooking' in Stockholm and 'molecular gastronomy' in Spain. 'Despite a movement to decolonise food by rethinking colonial legacies of power and extractive ways of eating, Michelin has derived its stellar reputation primarily from reviewing metropolitan European cuisine,' she said. Michelin Guide expansion into new regions is often funded by local tourism boards or governments, with Thailand, for example, paying more than £3 million for the guide to rank restaurants in Bangkok. The professor said this arrangement amounts to a 'shakedown' - stars in return for cash. Other academics describe the Michelin Guide as the 'gatekeeper' of fine dining, focusing on white, Eurocentric restaurants and controlling the styles of cuisine that are worth paying a premium for. Zeena Feldman, a professor of digital culture at King's College London, compared food influencers' reviews on social media to the Michelin Guide and concluded that the former gave a voice to 'under-represented cuisines' from different parts of the world. 'Culturally and economically, Instagram food criticism is a lot more inclusive than Michelin,' she said in a separate blog on The Conversation website. But supporters of the guide hit back. Chris Watson, a former Michelin Guide inspector who runs an HR consultancy, dismissed claims of racism and said there will always be an element of exclusivity to dining guides that rate restaurants. 'Michelin has introduced a 'Bib Gourmand' award representing value for money experiences in dining, and there are currently over 3,200 of these across Michelin Guides globally,' he said. 'It also introduced the green star, in 2020, to celebrate restaurants which utilise 100 per cent local ingredients - so far from elitist. And there are a multitude of Indian restaurants across the globe which have been awarded the star accolades. Hardly, racist.' A Michelin Guide spokeswoman said: 'The Michelin Guide evaluates all cuisines according to five universal criteria, without quotas or Eurocentric favouritism. Its expansion beyond Europe has led it to be present today in more than 60 destinations worldwide, from Mexico to Thailand, via Brazil and Turkey. 'The Guide celebrates the richness and diversity of culinary cultures by highlighting more than 200 styles of cuisine, the result of rigorous inspections carried out by inspectors from over 30 nationalities. 'Trésind Studio, the first Indian restaurant in Dubai awarded three Michelin stars, El Califa de León, a Michelin-starred Taquería in Mexico, the famous hawker centres of Singapore, and the kebab shops of Istanbul are all examples that perfectly illustrate this ambition: to celebrate universal culinary excellence, without borders. 'This diversity is also reflected in the wide range of price points among Michelin-selected restaurants. For example, some starred establishments in France offer three-course menus for less than 40 euros (£34), while some starred restaurants in Asia serve dishes for under 10 dollars (£7.40).'
