If there’s one thing Hollywood has in common with Britain, it’s a love of gossip.
So a person who’s famous on both sides of the pond was always going to be the subject of a Transatlantic media frenzy.
My old pal Simon Cowell has just experienced a week unlike any other and there’s a lot more to come.
Revelations broke earlier in the week that the pop music supremo will be having a baby with a New York socialite called Lauren Silverman.
She and her husband Andrew are going through what looks like a messy divorce.
Simon was named in the divorce papers as a co-respondent by Andrew, who cited adultery as the reason the marriage was ending.
Whatever happened, Simon’s name appearing in legal proceedings is a little bit of a strange one. In New York, like Los Angeles, you can file for a “no fault” divorce, which is easy and sees assets split down the middle.
Simon being named signals there’s something going on the former X Factor judge looks like he’s going to be dragged in to legal proceedings.
He could end up on the stand having to talk about personal things, like his earnings.
It strikes me as a move by someone looking for a cash settlement.
Simon might just agree to it. I’ve known him since I was 16, and his image on telly is a bit different from reality.
He may be combative and confrontational on shows like Pop Idol and The X Factor, but elsewhere he couldn’t be more different.
The Simon I know hates conflict and would do anything to avoid it. Whether it’s with friends or work, he doesn’t meet problems head-on in the way you’d think.
Him battling it out through the courts is certainly not his style, so don’t expect explosive footage of him telling a lawyer his cross-examination is “simply the worst performance I’ve ever seen”.
I don’t know the ins and outs of what happened in this supposed love triangle, but Simon will have to face up to becoming a dad for the first time, at the age of 53.
Of course, Simon won’t be suited to being a dad . . . or so I keep reading.
You’d think he was allergic to kids!
He may have avoided fatherhood until now, but that doesn’t mean he’s bad with children. In fact, it’s the opposite he’s great with kids. Whatever happens, I know he’ll be a good dad.
The media here have christened the ongoing Cowell scandal as “Mama Drama” and, while it’s diverting entertainment, we forget these are people’s lives. I feel especially bad for one person involved in all this.
People seem to have forgotten the Silvermans have a seven-year-old son.
He’s at the age where he’s old enough to understand what’s going on, but perhaps too young to fully cope.
You know what it’s like with school mates they’ll be asking him constantly about his mum going out with that guy from the telly. Hopefully it’ll all settle down for his sake.
As for Lauren herself, there was some speculation in the media about her demanding Simon marry her, as well as giving her a chance to star in her own reality television series.
I’ve no idea if that’s true or not, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
Whatever happens, Simon will handle it. He’s good at talking to the media, as he demonstrated last week when he appeared in an interview to promote the American X Factor.
“I haven’t read the newspapers. Am I missing something?” he simply replied.
I said it on Daybreak earlier in the week, but there are plenty more twists and turns with this story yet to unfold. There’s some stuff that I’ve heard about this whole situation that I couldn’t possibly repeat either.
But watch this space there’s a lot more to come.
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