Simon Cowell's Ego Not An Act.

05 May 2008

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A British TV presenter has branded Simon Cowell self-obsessed, insisting his vanity is genuine and not an act for the TV cameras.Stephen Mulhern - who presents Britain's Got More Talent, a spin-off of Cowell's Britain's Got Talent series - has laid bare his behind-the-scenes secrets, insisting the 48-year-old's conceit continues even after the cameras are switch off.He says, "Simon's first port of call is his portable mirror that he takes with him all the time."He has his own make-up artist, Julia, who travels with him wherever he goes.No one else can get his orange tint right.".Mulhern also confirmed there is a "genuine animosity" between Cowell and costar Piers Morgan, saying, "I worry that it could come to fisticuffs."Meanwhile in Cowell's other show The X-Factor, judge Sharon Osbourne will only take part in the next series of talent competition The X Factor if her salary is doubled, according to reports.The rock matriarch, a judge on the British reality programme since it began in 2004, has turned down TV bosses' offer of $1.5 million (£750,000) and is said to be demanding a new contract, worth $2 million (£1 million).

A source at TV network Itv tells British newspaper the News Of The World, "Sharon always pushes for the best deal.".

It was reported last year (Dec07) the series creator Simon Cowell was set to fire Osbourne following her scathing attack on fellow judge Dannii Minogue, who joined the show in its fourth season.