Simon Cowell ended his feud with Sharon Osbourne during a recent phone call with the former X Factor judge, he has revealed.
The Osbourne matriarch very publicly made a number of disparaging remarks about both Simon and his shows last year.
Sharon called him “fat faced” and “a fucking pain in the arse” in an expletive-filled rant on a US radio show, branding The X Factor “karaoke”.
She later claimed Simon had dropped her from the panel last year for being “too old”, adding on her US chat show The Talk: “If you want young, fire yourself and get rid of those man tits.”
Simon has now called a truce with Sharon, insisting there is “no bad blood” between them.
He told The Mirror: “I phoned her up the other day and said “Look, I’ll be honest with you.
“How could I criticise you for being mouthy when it’s the reason I hired you in the first place?!”
He continued: “Sharon gets a bit carried away but deep down she’s got real affection for the shows.
“There will be other versions of these shows, I am sure, and she is always welcome back. If ever she had an issue, I’d be on a plane in five seconds, she’d do the same for me.”
Sharon had been contracted to appear on one more series of The X Factor last year, and was originally announced as an extra fifth judge who would offer critiques during live shows.
Simon had joined by former One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson as well as husband-and-wife duo Robbie Williams and Ayda Field during the auditions.
But as the time came for Sharon to join them, it was announced she and Simon had mutually decided she wasn’t needed, though she later claimed she’d been sacked.
The regular edition of the ITV talent show is currently on a hiatus, with a celebrity series set to air later this month.
A crop of 14 stars will be looking to impress Simon and returning judges Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh in the hope of winning a recording contract.
An all-stars edition of X Factor is also set to air later in the year.