Monday, 18 June 2007

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Simon Cowell: Other people's TV hits make me miserable

Media mogul wishes he was behind every successful show

He may be worth an estimated £200m, but Simon Cowell says he is never happy unless he's trumped all his opponents.

‘If someone I know is doing better than me I get incredibly miserable,’ he confesses.

His envy even extends to his close friends.

‘I’m never pleased if they have a hit show,’ says Simon, 47. ‘I don’t go to bed thinking, “I’m really happy their show is doing so well.” It annoys me that it wasn’t my idea.

'When I watch Dancing With The Stars in America, it makes me sick with envy because I didn’t think of that idea myself.’

But Simon knows his need to size himself up against others is why he's a huge success.

‘That’s how it should be,' he tells Weekend. 'When you lose your competitive edge, you’re over.’