Pop Idol mastermind set for double triumph

Pop Idol mastermind Simon Fuller is set for a double success by scoring number one hits on both sides of the Atlantic.

Will Young and Gareth Gates look certain to hit the top spot in Britain on Sunday with their cover of the Beatles’ The Long and Winding Road.

American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson is also heading for the top of the United States charts with her debut single Before Your Love/A Moment Like This.

The double triumph caps an amazing year for Fuller, the man who steered the Spice Girls to fame.

His 19 management group has been responsible for 20% of all singles sold in the UK this year – the vast majority by Will, Gareth and Pop Idol finalist Darius Danesh.

Fuller has amassed a £50m (€80m) fortune after creating Pop Idol and selling the hit format around the world.

It has been snapped up by TV bosses in Europe, Canada, South Africa and most recently the Middle East.

Fuller signed Clarkson, a 20-year-old former cocktail waitress, to the 19 group along with the American Idol runner-up Justin Guarini.

They now look set to enjoy the sort of success in the US which Will and Gareth have had in the UK.

American Idol was a huge hit with audiences and there are now plans for a second series, with Simon Cowell likely to return as a judge for an expected £1 million-plus pay packet.