Simon Cowell was born on October 7, 1959 in Brighton, England. He began his career in the music industry back in 1979, when he joined EMI Music Publishing. Having learnt what it took to make a hit record, he was quick to set up his own label, ‘Fanfare’ with partner Iain Burton. Not only has Simon made records, he also breaks them: over a ten year period, via his company ‘S Records’, he has achieved sales of over 25 million albums, over 70 top 30 records, and 17 Number 1 singles. His band 'Westlife' has achieved an impressive 10 Number 1 hits alone.

Simon has now become a celebrity in his own right, serving as a judge on "American Idol’ show. He spends his time between the UK and America, and has set up his own production company, Syco TV, which co-produced the latest breed of talent show – ‘The X Factor'.