Simon Cowell has been putting on a brave past since losing his mother, Julie, earlier this month. The music mogul took just two days off work following her death before returning to The X Factor.
Now, Simon, 55, has opened up about losing Julie, 89, and explains that he kept a stiff upper lip as he didn’t want to burden anyone with his grief.
“I did not want to burden anyone else with my problem,” he told The Sun. “That’s why I never talked about it. In a way that was the hardest part because it was always on my mind.
“But look, I experienced it with my dad and the only thing I can say is that I have incredible memories.”
He added: “She had been ill for a very long time. It really happened last year and it was a tough period.”
Simon also admitted he returned to work because “it's exactly what she wanted me to do because she loved what I did.”
Fellow X Factor judge Cheryl Fernandez Versini praised Simon’s bravery, telling the Sunday People: “I don’t know how he’s coping. I've always admired his strength and tenacity but now I have a whole new level of respect and love for him. He has that British stiff upper lip.”