Simon Phillip Cowell is an English television personality, entrepreneur, and record executive. He has judged on the British television talent competition shows Pop Idol (2001–2003), The X Factor UK and Britain's Got Talent (2007–present), and the American television talent competition shows American Idol (2002–2010), The X Factor US (2011–2013) and America's Got Talent (2016–present). Cowell founded the British entertainment company Syco in 2005, as well as its now-defunct predecessor, Syco Music in 2002.
Cowell in 2011
Irish boy band Westlife achieved the first official number one on the UK Singles Downloads Chart with "Flying Without Wings" in September 2004.
Cowell alongside Cheryl Cole as judges on The X Factor UK's seventh series on 21 June 2010
One Direction signed to Cowell's record label after finishing third and being mentored by Cowell on The X Factor in the UK in 2010. The group is one of Cowell's international break-out acts.
The X Factor (British TV series)
The X Factor is a British reality television music competition, created by Simon Cowell. Premiering on 4 September 2004, it was produced by Fremantle's British entertainment company, Thames, and Cowell's production company Syco Entertainment for ITV, as well as simulcast on Virgin Media One in Ireland. The programme ran for around 445 episodes across fifteen series, each one primarily broadcast late in the year, until its final episode in December 2018. The majority of episodes were presented by Dermot O'Leary, with some exceptions: the first three series were hosted by Kate Thornton; while Caroline Flack and Olly Murs hosted the show for the twelfth series.
Simon Cowell, creator of The X Factor and the second longest-serving judge in the programme's history
Louis Walsh, longest-serving judge on The X Factor in all but two series.
Sharon Osbourne, a judge for the first four series, and then again in 2013, and 2016–17
Dermot O'Leary served the longest as the programme's host from 2007, with a one-year break in 2015
