The music mogul has reflected on the infamous 2009 audition that transformed Susan Boyle into a global star, admitting the judging panel’s behaviour left them looking “horrible” when the episode aired.
Simon Cowell has admitted he, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan looked “awful” and “horrible” during Susan Boyle’s first audition on Britain’s Got Talent.
The music mogul, 66, said the panel’s reaction to the singer became “a wake-up call” after it aired to millions as he reflected on the now infamous 2009 audition during the first episode of Jamie East’s Celebrity Trenches podcast, revisiting the moment Susan Boyle, now 65, walked onto the ITV talent show stage and stunned viewers with her performance of Les Misérables anthem I Dreamed A Dream.
Simon said: “I look back and I just think, ‘My God we look so awful, horrible’. I actually don’t think we look bad enough. I think we were even worse than that and they went, ‘You look awful’.”
He continued: “And I said, ‘We are awful!’ All of us. I mean that look that Piers gives me, I think out of all the looks I’ve ever remembered that might be the worst. I was just as bad.”
Simon added the judges’ reaction became an important lesson after Susan’s performance immediately silenced the audience and panel.
He said: “Of course I had the ability to cut all of that stuff out but it was a bit of a wake up call. You can’t judge a book by its cover.
“We do look disgusting but you have to hold your hands up at that moment and go, ‘A lot of people are going to realise in about 24 hours that we are just horrible’.”
Susan previously spoke about the experience in an interview with the Irish Daily Mirror, admitting she felt like “an act in a freak show” before she began singing.
She said: “It felt quite suffocating, almost as though I was an act in a freak show, and that hurt.”
Susan continued: “It was incredibly difficult to come to terms with for a time, but the positives have far outweighed the negatives.”
Recalling the atmosphere inside the auditorium, Susan added: “Everyone was laughing at me; they wondered who this daft woman with the crazy hair was… and I had made a bad choice in clothes, so no-one had high expectations.”
But the audition turned Susan into one of the defining reality television contestants of the 2000s, launching a music career that has included chart-topping albums, international tours and performances for world leaders and royalty.
Her debut album I Dreamed A Dream became one of the fastest-selling debut records in UK history following her appearance on Britain’s Got Talent, the same programme that helped establish Simon as one of television’s most recognisable entertainment figures after the success of The X Factor, Pop Idol and American Idol.
In recent months, Susan has undergone a public image refresh, sharing more frequent updates across social media and posting photographs alongside celebrities including Elton John, Peter Kay, Lionel Richie and Marcus Wareing.
Susan has also showcased a new blonde hairstyle and promoted “Subo” branded merchandise to her followers online.
The singer, who suffered a minor stroke in 2022 before returning to the Britain’s Got Talent stage the following year, has continued to receive support from fans who regard her original audition as one of the defining moments in British television history.
Simon Cowell admits his reaction to Susan Boyle’s BGT audition was ‘disgusting’
