Simon Cowell has apologised to Britain's Got Talent 2011 winner Jai McDowall for saying he was "disappointed" he won.
At the time, Cowell revealed that he didn't see the Scottish singer as a "genuine star" – and the music mogul has now admitted that he was sorry for what he previously said.
Ahead of Jai's upcoming appearance on Britain's Got Talent: The Champions this Saturday, Cowell told The Sun: "I did feel when I saw him again that he's the definition of a proud man. He didn't sulk — he just came back to prove a point. And he did.
"I knew I had to apologise to him at that moment. It gave me a chance to say something publicly I should have said some time ago.
"But it was also the fact he had the guts to come back and compete, knowing I wasn't that supportive the first time he was on the show. I thought, 'Good for you — you did very well'. I think he'll get a lot of work off the back of this show."
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BGT: The Champions premiered on ITV last weekend with the return of Cowell, David Walliams, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon on the judging panel.
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The series kicked off with a performance from 2007 winner and opera singer Paul Potts, who unfortunately didn't make it through to the final. He lost out to daredevil Bello and his daughter Annaliese Nock, and Ukraine's Got Talent winner Kseniya Simonova.
Britain's Got Talent: The Champions airs on Saturdays at 7.30pm on ITV.
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