Simon Cowell says he’d rather ‘jump off a cliff’ than go on a game show after The X Factor cancellation

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Simon Cowell has claimed that he would “jump off a cliff” if he started going on game shows after The X Factor came to an end.

The X Factor aired its last series in 2018, but was not officially cancelled until 2021.

In an interview with The Sun, series judge and TV personality Cowell opened up about the toll that the series had taken on his personal life.

According to Cowell, he had been “obsessed with TV ratings” and “really unhappy” before the birth of his son Eric.

Asked about his plans now that The X Factor has finished for good, Cowell said: “I have ideas. I’d like to do more mentoring because I get frustrated with people bringing me the same thing. There’s a lot of creativity in the world right now, it’s like everyone is auditioning, and if I can do something to help then I get a buzz out of that.

“We just need to get rid of the formats and rules – and being in one country. We don’t have to be boxed in, with projects like this we can make music globally.

While The X Factor has ended, the possibility of a comeback has remained in the air, with a new US revival rumoured to be in the offing.

Cowell went on to say that he is “not desperate to be on TV”, and would “only do it if there was a purpose to it”.

“If X Factor doesn’t come back, I won’t be looking for other shows to appear on. I don’t want to be just a TV personality,” he continued. “The idea of The X Factor not being on so I go on a game show . . . I think I’d jump off a cliff. I genuinely can’t think of anything worse.”

“If you were to ask me now which is more important, my career or my family, then I’d say family, 100 per cent. But when you talk about legacy, you want to believe what you’ve done has been worth it, that’s important too.”