Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Si’s cheques factor Mogul ready to sign 3-year deal worth £25m for shows with ITV
X Factor viewers BGT viewers
SIMON Cowell is set to agree a multimillion pound deal to keep The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent on air until at least the end of 2022.
The music mogul, 59, told TV sources he is close to signing a three-year contract with ITV bosses for the high-profile shows.
Insiders say the terms will be similar to his last deal, signed in 2016, which was personally worth around £25million to him.
The shows’ multi-million pound budgets will also remain about the same.
A source said: “There have been meetings recently between Simon’s producers and ITV executives to thrash out some of the details, but Simon is already planning how to build on the shows’ successes on ITV. Everyone is looking forward to the future.
“Whilst there may be some details in the paperwork still to be ironed out, from a fans’ point of view it is a three-year deal which means these much loved shows will remain on ITV for a long time to come.”
Simon, who started The X Factor in 2004 and BGT in 2007, is currently very happy both on and off screen.
He is on a vegan diet and looked slim and fit with partner Lauren Silverman, mum to their son Eric, five, at his company Syco’s summer party in London last week.
The X Factor final in December last year pulled in a peak of 7.5 million viewers, up 500,000 on the previous year. The Britain’s Got Talent final in June was watched by 9.7 million people.
A source said: “Simon is loving life and is trying new things like the X Factor with old contestants returning, and the celeb version is going to shake things up. He has a good feeling.”