Pantomime season may be over, but the claws were out earlier this month when two of showbiz’s biggest divas – Sharon Osbourne and Amanda Holden – clashed in an online mud-slinging match over music and entertainment mogul, Simon Cowell.
And while Simon’s close pal Amanda, 53, was the one to ignite the public feud, insiders say the Britain’s Got Talent judge has been left in shock by Sharon’s targeted outburst against her on social media.
A source says, “Amanda Holden was left devastated by Sharon's outburst on X. She was only sticking up for Simon, who’s her friend, and stands by her words.
“She and her inner circle think Sharon is jealous, but Amanda was totally shocked.”
Amanda was the first to publicly call out Sharon, 71, over her verbal attack against Simon Cowell during her stint on Celebrity Big Brother last month. Sharon, alongside former X Factor co-star and pal Louis Walsh, launched into a series of rants against the talent boss, 64, threatening that he would “need more Botox” after they called him “snotty”, “weird” and made jokes about the way he dresses.
They also described The X Factor, which Sharon worked on as a judge between 2004 and 2007, as “all c**p”, with Louis accusing Simon of saying “the same s***” to all of the contestants.
But hitting back in an interview last fortnight, Amanda said of Louis and Sharon’s actions, “It’s bitter and pathetic. It was like Cinderella with her two sisters in the background – just stabby, stabby, stabby.
“I thought, ‘Oh my God, it’s like watching a pantomime.’ I just think they look so nasty and awful…You should have respect for the opportunity given to you… just be gracious.”
However, a day later, Sharon hit back – penning a letter to Amanda on social media, which details all of her own personal success and wealth ahead of landing her role on The X Factor.
Sharon wrote, “Amanda, I think you’re missing the point here. No disrespect to Simon Cowell but he NEEDED ME for musical credibility on X Factor.”
The former talent agent and The Osbournes star went on to warn Amanda never to “make comments about my lifestyle given to me by Simon Cowell”, claiming they were “demeaning” and calling her an “ill-informed sycophantic”.
But the source says Amanda is done with the drama and has been told by Simon and his wife Lauren Silverman not to provoke Sharon again.
They add, “Simon and Lauren, who Amanda has grown very close to, have made it clear to Amanda not to make further comments about Sharon. They want her to forget Sharon’s attack and Simon’s told Amanda to try to focus on the new series of BGT.
“Amanda has the support of Simon and his friends, but that hasn’t stopped her feeling embarrassed about it all. She’s focusing on laughing about it as, from her perspective, all she was doing was standing up for a mate, and she thinks Sharon has made herself look bad.
“She’s just walking away from the whole thing now and leaving the drama behind. She feels like that’s the best form of revenge, as it doesn’t fuel any more outbursts from Sharon.”
Speaking out about her close friendship with Simon, who she has worked alongside for 17 years, last September, Amanda revealed that her BGT boss has become a “prominent male” in her life, alongside her husband of 16 years, Chris Hughes.
Opening up on Myleene Klass’ podcast, They Don’t Teach This At School, Amanda said, “I’ve known him almost as long as I’ve known my husband. And so he’s sort of another quite prominent male in my life.
“You know, he’s very funny. He says he owns a third of my house and a third of my car and everything else. He’s very funny about it. But he’s always been an encouraging, you know, sort of background man, I would say.”
And while Sharon is adamant that any claim to her success by Simon wouldn’t land well with her, the insider says Amanda and Chris have become closer than ever with the mogul.
Despite Closer reporting in November that Amanda had put her foot down and refused to be “punished” by Simon for standing up for David Walliams during his legal battle against BGT, away from the limelight, she and Simon have increasingly spent time together with their families.
Now the source adds, “Chris and Amanda have become regular visitors to Simon and Lauren’s new Cotswolds home. With Amanda’s youngest daughter, Holly, the same age as Simon and Lauren’s son, Eric – the two get on really well and both families enjoy spending time together.
“Amanda has remained a loyal friend to Simon since first joining the BGT panel in 2007 and was even a driving force behind his marriage to Lauren in 2021. She was very close to Simon’s late mum, Julie – and often turns to Simon for advice on her career.
“So yes, she’s a huge fan of Simon, but feels he has been a champion for her too. Nothing Sharon says will change that.”