418 10 16 19.4 STE STILL WAITING FOR SI’S APOLOGY Winner lifts lid on feuding
THE X Factor’s first winner Steve Brookstein is still waiting for Simon Cowell to say sorry for their fallout.
The 2004 champion says he regrets his dispute with the music mogul and wishes Cowell would apologise “for screwing me over” so they could make up.
The singer blames their feud for his failure to find fame and fortune despite winning the contest with six million votes.
Steve said: “Of course
I wish I’d never fallen out with Simon. I didn’t have kids at the time, and would have been a lot more thoughtful about risking my career if I had.
“If he could just accept that he made a mistake and apologised for screwing me over, unleashing Max Clifford on me…
“If he could just say ‘yes, Steve was a great singer, he had potential but certain things happened’… Sadly, he won’t. But I think I would have made a good judge on the new series of The
X Factor.”
But Brookstein reckons that he is happier than ever playing to small audiences.
He told the
Daily Star Sunday: “I’ve never been greedy, I’ve never wanted the best cars in the world or the biggest house, I just wanted to get on and make something of my life, which I’m proud to say that I have.
“I’m meeting some great people doing gigs at holiday camps, on cruise ships and at venues up and down the country. “And they all remember where they were when I won.
“I’ve got a big gig coming up next month at the Crazy Bear Stadhampton, my charity night at the Hilton in Cobham in October, and I’m still writing and recording my own music. My last album was some of the best work I’ve ever produced and I’m incredibly proud of it. I try not to live with regret and I look at what I’ve learned from the experience – what I’m still learning from it.”
Steve’s feud with his former mentor Simon, 58, started eight months after he won the first X Factor final in December 2004.
His soulful voice proved a hit with fans but when he refused to do a second album of covers and wanted to write his own material, he was dropped from Simon’s record label.
Steve, 49, said: “It’s not been easy and it did nearly ruin me.”
The dad-of-two also believes that had it not been for the love of his wife Eileen – a pianist and jazz singer – and the support of family and friends, he could never have coped with the years of negativity and abuse.
He said: “I’ve been slated. I’ve been branded a flop and the show’s biggest ever loser. But do you know what? People go through a lot worse every single day. “I’ve got two gorgeous kids and a wonderful wife. It’ll be our 12th wedding anniversary next month and we’ve been together 17 years, now that is something to celebrate.” You can check out Steve’s music and future gigs by going to londonsoulandjazz.co.uk.