I’m A Celeb: Shannon Noll lashes out at Simon Cowell, labelling the British music mogul ‘a f---ing idiot’

SHANNON Noll has launched an extraordinary attack on arguably the world’s most powerful man in music.

SHANNON Noll has launched an extraordinary verbal attack on arguably the world’s most powerful man in music.

The former Australian Idol runner-up has labelled Simon Cowell a “f***ing idiot” and a “rich prick” for giving his song, What About Me, to another artist to record in the UK and the song topped the charts there.

“I’ve never met the f***ing idiot,” Noll said of Cowell on reality show I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! “I didn’t write it, see. He went back to the original writers and said, ‘we are going to cut it.’”

Shannon Noll has let rip over music mogul Simon Cowell on I'm A Celebrity.

What About Me was written by Garry Frost and Frances Swan and first recorded in 1982 by Aussie band, Moving Pictures.

Noll placed second to Guy Sebastian in the first season of Australian Idol in 2003 and both were signed to Sony Music Australia.

His debut single was a cover of the track that topped the Australian charts and went to number two in Ireland.

“He (Simon Cowell) signed the runner-up out of X Factor (Shayne Ward) and cut What About Me on his own and sold a million albums,” Noll explained, adding that because his version was a cover he had no rights to the song.

Shannon Noll in the jungle camp on I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here!

“The X Factor is his baby so the runner up he signed to his own record label, he knew it was going to be a hit so he cut me out of it.”

This happened around the time Cowell split from Idol format creator Simon Fuller to set up his own management company, Syco, and may have had some bearing on the business decision.

Noll’s fellow campmate, Real Housewives of Melbourne star Jackie Gillies, was shocked at the revelation.

“That is bad karma,” said the wife of Silverchair drummer Ben Gillies.

To that, Noll responded: “I don’t know darl. It doesn’t seem to these days. All I see is the rich pricks getting fat and richer.”

Cowell is a former record label executive turned reality television judge and producer, who has worked on formats from Pop Idol to American Idol, X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent. In creating the X Factor format, and through his management company, he has been responsible for the success of many of the biggest artists of the past decade, including One Direction, Little Mix and Fifth Harmony.

* The journalist is in South Africa as a guest of Channel Ten.

Originally published as I’m A Celeb: Shannon Noll lashes out at Simon Cowell, labelling the British music mogul ‘a f---ing idiot’