Talent show boss Simon Cowell has admitted he was ‘lost’ for years following the deaths of his parents as he shared the one thing that has changed his life completely
Simon Cowell has emotionally opened up on the loss of his parents as he admitted his own son Eric was the one person to save him. The talent show boss, 65, is a proud dad to his 11-year-old son but has admitted it brings up pain about not having his own parents around.
His father, Eric Philip Cowell, died aged 81 in 1999, followed by his mother, Julie, in July 2015, aged 90. Simon made sure to pay tribute to his beloved dad with his name choice for his son, who was born a year before his mum’s death in 2014.
The Britain’s Got Talent creator’s parents sadly missed out on huge milestones in Simon’s life, including his impressive career as well as his engagement to partner Lauren Silverman.
Simon has now admitted to being “lost” following the deaths of his mum and dad, up until his son was born. [Fatherhood has] had a huge impact on me because I loved my parents so much, and once they left, I was kind of lost for a while, and then Eric kind of saved me,” he emotionally shared.
He told People: “Because that love comes back a hundred times more powerful. I mean, it’s extraordinary and it never goes. So I didn’t expect that, and when it happened, it was like, ‘Wow.’ I mean, it’s incredible.”
The former X Factor judge even confessed that becoming a father made his job easier. He said he now thinks of Eric when he is filming his TV shows and judges acts “through his son’s eyes”.
In another bold confession, the music mogul revealed he has even become less career-focused now that he has Eric. “You realise that there are other things more important, actually, than your career,” he said.
Simon added: “If I wasn’t where I am in my life today, I think it would feel quite empty.”
Last year, Simon heartbreakingly re-lived the torment of losing his parents as he revealed he was told his beloved father had died while he was working thousands of miles from home.
The music mogul, then 40, was celebrating Westlife hitting No. 1 in the charts for the first time with Swear It Again when he discovered dad Eric had suffered a fatal heart attack.
When Simon called his family to tell of his first success, his mother Julie couldn’t bear to tell him the tragic news. Sensing something wasn’t right, he called the family home again hours later – and it was left to younger brother Nicholas to tell him the terrible truth.
Speaking to entrepreneur Steven Bartlett on his Diary of a CEO podcast, the TV star says he didn’t know what he had left to live for when his mother also died in 2015.
He said: “I thought my parents were going to live forever. The hardest thing about losing your parents is that you can’t think of them after. It’s too hard.
“I would have swapped all my success to keep him around. They were my best friends, I told them everything. It’s like how I feel for Eric, it’s pure love.”
READ MORE: Doctor tells Brit dad to ‘carry on’ as he loses two stone in two months with one change
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.