Cole reveals Cowell X Factor bust-up
The former Girls Aloud star, 29, revealed how she sent Cowell an expletive-filled text message in which she told him: “I hate you,” and condemned him for not warning her about her sacking face-to-face.
In her new book Cheryl: My Story, she also accused Cowell of valuing his business more than their friendship.
Cole, who was a judge on the UK X Factor for three series, said that after the first day of filming auditions for the US show in 2011, Cowell asked her if she wanted to return to the UK.
Describing his comments as “irritating beyond belief” she said: “The only reason I was doing the American X Factor was because Simon more or less told me I was doing it.”
Three weeks later while on a break from filming, Cole said she was asked to meet X Factor’s executive producer in a London hotel where she was told she was being axed from the US show but still had a place on the British programme.
The producer also mentioned that her strong Geordie accent may have been a factor in the decision, she said.
In the book, Cole, who found fame in 2002 on reality TV show Popstars: The Rivals, said she refused the offer.
She said: “[Cowell] didn’t even have the guts to phone or send a message warning me what was coming.
“I was furious with Simon for letting it happen like this. I believed we had a good friendship and I couldn’t understand why he just hadn’t been straight with me.”
Cole said she wrote in her text to the entertainment entrepreneur: “I hate you. I understand you’re a businessman, and what I’ve learned from this is that business means more to you than our friendship.”
The singer was replaced on the US X Factor with Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger, now a judge on this year’s UK series.
She said she made up with Cowell around six months later, with Cowell describing the decision to axe Cole as “the worst mistake I ever made”.
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