Britain’s Got Talent’s Simon Cowell has confessed he is ‘always worrying about money’ on Elizabeth Day’s How To Fail podcast.
Simon Cowell claims to not be as wealthy as people think and claims he is always ‘worrying about money’. The 65-year-old music mogul, known for his successful talent shows, The X-Factor, Britain’s Got Talent and American Idol, has shut down claims of his alleged £500m net worth, insisting that his fortune is ‘not even close to that’.
Simon is a globally renowned record producer, talent agent and consultant in the UK music industry, which he has been doing since the 1980s. He became a household name in 2001 after making an appearance as a judge on Pop Idol.
The dad-of-one is also credited for signing and launching the careers of huge superstars including Little Mix, James Arthur, Labrinth, Leona Lewis, Fifth Harmony, Olly Murs, Noah Cyrus, and One Direction. Despite all this and having been in the public eye for decades, Cowell has confessed that money still remains a concern for him.
Speaking on the How To Fail podcast with Elizabeth Day, he admitted: “I always worry about money.”
He went on to discuss the unpredictability of events like Covid, which affected his finances, recalling how he had read about it on a website and immediately called his partner to express his concerns, likening it to the movie Contagion.
He explained: “I always worry about money because I think you have to in a way. You think about Covid as an example. No one could have predicted Covid.
“I remember reading it for the first time on a website, and I don’t read a lot of stuff on social media, but I’d heard about it, so I was curious.
“Second day, the story got bigger to a point where I actually phoned my partner and I said “I don’t like the look of this, I have a horrible feeling it’s going to be like that movie Contagion, and I think we need to get all of our shows into production around the world quicker this year”. And we did.
“And when it happened, it was obviously worse than I could have imagined.
“When you think about that, the wars, and everything else, the instability, what is safe? Is it gold, cash, stocks? I don’t think anything’s safe any longer. I guess your house is.”
He added: “Someone did actually say to me once – thank god – “live in your money”. And it was really good advice, i.e, enjoy it, and be happy with it, but understand that the world is precarious.”
When podcast host Elizabeth mentioned that Simon’s net worth was rumoured to be around £500m, the dad-of-one rubbished these claims.
He said: “Oh God, it’s not that. I’m not even close to that. I’m being serious. I’m not.”
He added: “I’ve made a lot, I’m not going to lie. I’ve made a bit of money, yes, but not that much, no.”
When asked directly if he thought he was rich, Simon hesitated, then said: “Probably yes, I’ve definitely got enough, I don’t need anymore. I don’t yearn for what I thought I wanted a few years ago.”
He recalled that in his early 40s, he envied those with yachts, thinking that was the extreme wealth he desired.
However, he soon realised he disliked the ‘obnoxious and snobby’ crowd and learned that money didn’t make them happier.
Simon downsized his company SyCo in 2022 to ‘focus on his family’ ending The X Factor and some of his other major shows.
Simon continues to feature on Britain’s Got Talent, however, his search for the next big boyband with the forthcoming Netflix series, The Midas Touch, continues.
