Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell
Simon Phillip Cowell is an English reality television judge, entrepreneur, philanthropist, film, record, and television producer. He is most recognized as a judge on the British TV talent competition series Pop Idol, The X Factor, and Britain's Got Talent, and the American TV talent competition shows American Idol, The X Factor, and America's Got Talent. Cowell owns the television production and music publishing house Syco...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionEntrepreneur
Date of Birth7 October 1959
CityLondon, England
I think of stress as the creator of cancer and heart attacks, like a tiny little ball you feed. I believe that one of the reasons I've never got ill is that I'm not stressed.
I like to know why a video has suddenly gone viral, why a song has broken, why a TV show is suddenly rating out of pattern... I'm pretty good at understanding why things are becoming popular.
I'm a great believer in getting checked out because if you know you're OK, you actually feel better; your mind plays a big part of it.
The young people working for me are ambitious and hard-working. That work ethic has always been a trait of the British.
The only magazines I read are car magazines.
It's the government's job to encourage entrepreneurialism and investment. Most importantly, it's the government's duty to inspire confidence.
One thing I've learnt is you should never fight it. They're natural emotions and when you try and bottle everything up, that's what can make you depressed. Luckily I have fantastic memories [about my parents] and they really help.
My proudest achievement has been the success of the shows and artists I have been involved with, because they were made in Britain.
Thank God kids love following an artist. When you get a group who pop, it's the best thing in the world.
The minute you start assuming that the audience is very happy to see the same show again, you're dead.
I get very anti-social, depressed and irritable with people. I don't have time for them. I can't make phone calls and stuff. I just sit on my own for days.
On one level, going bust didn't bother me. It was the 80s, and there wasn't the stigma about bankruptcy that you might think. My mates weren't bothered. My dad was in business.. he knew that it happened, too. He loaned me the money to bail me out, and I got a loan from the bank to pay him back.
Everyone who turns up on 'X Factor' does it because a door has been closed to them at some time in their lives, and this is the only shot they have got.
I was so tired, wasn't having fun any more, and wasn't sure if I wanted to do this any longer. So I turned my phone off and sorted my head out. It was the opposite of a breakdown really, it was a break-up - I got rid of all the idiots, realised my job was supposed to be fun, and got on with my life.