Cheryl Cole Reveals Why She Finally Forgave Simon Cowell

The new X Factor judge talks openly about their fallout - and Simon (gasp!) admits he was in the wrong

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Cheryl Cole blonde hair, X Factor press conference
Cheryl Cole blonde hair, X Factor press conference
(Image credit: Rex)

The new X Factor judge talks openly about their fallout - and Simon (gasp!) admits he was in the wrong

Cheryl Cole made waves yesterday when she confirmed that she's joining Simon Cowell in returning to The X Factor.

The reason people were so surprised - and intrigued - by the news is because the former Girls Aloud singer was famously sacked by Simon just weeks after starting her gig on the US X Factor in 2011. (The network reportedly thought American viewers couldn't understand Cheryl's Geordie accent.)

Needless to say, the two weren't exactly on the best terms after her firing. So what made Cheryl decide to reunite with the man who let her go?

'There's only so much begging one can take,' Cheryl, 30, joked in an interview with Daybreak this morning. 'It's not nice to see a grown man cry, so I finally succumbed.'

Cheryl Cole, Simon Cowell Daybreak interview

Cheryl Cole, Simon Cowell Daybreak interview
(Image credit: Daybreak/ITV)

But it seems like the real reason she agreed (other than the hefty paycheck!) is that Simon, 54, seems genuinely remorseful about the situation.

'I've done this a long time. You have fall-outs along the way,' Simon said. 'I held my hands up and said I made a mistake and I'm sorry - and I was sorry. And then when I decided to come back, I also decided I had to have Cheryl back on the show with me.'

So the pair may be on good terms now - but that's not to say Cheryl didn't have her revenge.

During the interview, she recounted the tale of how she hired a plane to fly a birthday banner over Simon's Miami home in 2012, which read: 'Simon Cowell is 52 today! Ha ha ha! Love Cheryl xoxo.'

So how did Simon respond? Apparently he sent her message saying, 'I.am.going.to.kill you.'

'I was highly amused,' Cheryl said.

So who will be joining the bickering twosome at the judges' table this year? First off, Simon says you can ignore the rumours.

'I'm reading reports that we've offered the job to people and they've turned it down - it's complete rubbish,' he says.

All we know for sure at this point is that the fourth judge (to join Simon, Cheryl and veteran judge Louis Walsh) will be someone they both like.

'We did agree that we'd agree together,' Simon explained. 'Because I'm not going to put somebody next to her who she hates.'

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Ali Gray
Ali Gray is an award-winning content director and digital strategist. Most recently she was the Director of Branded Content at Hearst, and helped to bridge the gap between the editorial and commercial worlds working across all Hearst brands, including ELLE, Cosmopolitan, Esquire and Harper's Bazaar. Prior to that she worked as an editor contributing to several brands such as The Telegraph, iVillage UK.