Cowell brands Hucknall "really ugly"

Simon Cowell has hit back at Mick Hucknall by branding him "really ugly", reports claim.

The retort comes nine months after the Simply Red singer accused Cowell and The X Factor of holding back the recording industry, adding that the music mogul was "slimy".

Speaking during a question and answer session with Piers Morgan at a dinner for the charity Norwood, Cowell said Hucknall only attracts women because he is famous, reports The Sun.

"The most repulsive celebrity I've ever met is Mick Hucknall," he joked. "Unlike me he doesn't realise why all the chicks love him. And he's really ugly."

Cowell went on to liken Louis Walsh to a mosquito, explaining: "He's not too bad until he gets close up and then he's really annoying."