Bruno Tonioli defends 'hard-working' pal Simon Cowell after digs from Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh
With just three days left to go until Britain’s Got Talent returns to our screens for its 17th series, judge Bruno Tonioli has dished the dirt on what fans can expect from the latest series while appearing on Wednesday’s edition of Lorraine. And alongside a sneaky preview of what happens this year - including his now infamous buzzer breaking shenanigans - Bruno was also quick to defend his fellow huge Simon Cowell from recent criticism.
For the past several weeks Simon has been caught up in a controversial feud with his former co-stars Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh, who appeared together on Celebrity Big Brother and slammed the star for his attitude, dress sense and behaviour from their X-Factor days.
In a scathing string of barbs, Simon was branded “snotty”, with the duo arguing that he only had time for his close friends. Sharon even alleged that Simon had cost her a high-profile gig on The Masked Singer, something that continued to sting to this day.
However, Bruno was quick to defend his long-time pal, as he told Lorraine Kelly that Simon had worked hard for everything he had and deserved every bit of success that had come his way.
Bruno explained: “I’ve known him since the early 80s. I’ve been friends with him and his family since before we were all successful. You think things have been handed to him, but Simon worked very, very hard to get to where he’s at for years. It isn’t just something that happened: ‘oh here’s the biggest star in the world’, no. There’s a lot of work that’s gone into that and he deserves all the success he has. “
In the early days of their career, Bruno and Simon first crossed paths while dabbling in the entertainment industry and struck up a strong friendship that has now spanned over 40 years in total. So much so, the duo even recently spent Easter together with their families at Simon’s Malibu home, something Bruno revealed was a wonderfully “normal” and relaxed experience away from the pressures of fame.
“We had a wonderful, wonderful day,” said Bruno. “ It was very relaxed, chatting. There was no work. It was just like ‘normal’ people. We were just having a normal relaxed time.”
The well deserved break also came after Bruno had tried to cut back on his back and forth journeys between the UK and the United States, something that up until the pandemic had been a hugely draining part of his day to day life as he juggled the demands of Strictly Come Dancing and it’s US counterpart Dancing With The Stars.
Bruno explained: “It was unsustainable. I did it up until the pandemic because I love the show. I loved Strictly, I loved Dancing With The Stars - and it just came to a point where I can’t do this. Len stopped before me and I just couldn’t do it anymore.
He then added: “I still do Dancing With The Stars now in America, so I’m still part of the show but doing Britain’s Got Talent is so different for me. What you do really, is a completely different way of doing it.
Bruno then continued: “I do it my way, and it’s really being part of it and being inspired by it. You encourage people to go for their dreams and reach for the stars - to don’t let anything stop you! You’re here once, so make your time worthwhile.”
Britain’s Got Talent starts Saturday 20 April at 7:30pm on ITV and ITVX
