Simon Cowell's ex minder Big Tony reveals secret life of X Factor judgeExclusive by Melissa Thompson 31/08/2009
Simon Cowell and bodyguard Tony Adkins (Pic:RexFeatures)
Man mountain Tony Adkins spent eight years protecting Simon Cowell from irate talent-show rejects - so he knows what makes TV's Mr Nasty tick.
The hulking 21-stone minder, known as Big Tony, looked after Simon round the clock and got to know the man behind the legendary put-downs.
He reveals Simon is a wind-up merchant and so vain he can't walk past a mirror without checking his hair.
But he is also "the best boss in the world" and always sticks his hand in his pocket for those in need.
Big Tony was dropped from the latest X Factor - axed in favour of a three-man security team as part of the show's revamp. Now instead of safeguarding Simon, Cheryl Cole, Louis Walsh and Dannii Minogue when things threaten to turn nasty, he's watching it all from the comfort of his living room sofa.
He insists he's not bitter about being dumped, although he is missing working for his famous boss.
"Simon was so laid-back and a very nice guy," says Tony, 47. "He was generous, too. Whenever the show finished - and at Christmas - you'd get an envelope as a thank you. The last one I got had ÂĢ700 stuffed in it.
"One year we were in Belfast for the auditions and Simon saw a homeless man with a dog sitting in the street, so he went up to him and gave him ÂĢ50.
"Simon attracts a ridiculous amount of attention wherever he goes. You can be in an auditorium with 4,000 people and as soon as he walks in they all start screaming. They'll push everyone out of the way just to get closer to him.
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"I've had 18-year-old girls telling me they want to have Simon's babies or marry him. But Simon just takes it all in his stride and laughs about it.
"He's a very private person. He doesn't give much away. You never see him drunk or out of control."
Tony then confides: "Simon is vain - he does his hair all the time.
"If there are five breaks in filming then Simon will do his hair five times.
"And I think he has about 20 identical T-shirts. I remember once he had a hole in one, so he just reached into a bag and pulled out another from a big pile.
"Louis goes around saying, 'Hello, hello hello,' all the time, always up for a laugh. Cheryl's pleasant, and Dannii's really laid-back and will talk to anyone.
"All the judges used to get on but they'd wind each other up, too. If Simon thought Louis was being mean about an auditionee he'd say, 'Louis, go and apologise,' but Louis would refuse.
"So Simon would ask him again to say sorry but Louis would just say no.
"And they'd just carry on like that, winding each other up. But they were really good friends."
Tony, who lives in Enfield, North London, had worked for Simon since the first series of Pop Idol in 2001.
He admits that, on several occasions, if he hadn't been close by things could have got out of hand.
"The contestants can get a bit loud," he laughs. "It's funny, you've got their friends and family telling them they're great when really they're bloody awful. So they don't take criticism too well.
"I was protecting Simon from people who said they wanted to punch his face in. No one ever did in the end. They'd wait outside to 'get him' and I'd be ready. But as soon as he walked out they'd say, 'Ooh Simon! Can I have your autograph?'
"It was the same with Cheryl. People would be bitchy about her if she didn't vote for them, especially the young girls, but when she got there they'd ask to have their photo taken with her."
Tony started out in security when he was 14, after friends got him work on pub doors in Fulham, West London, where he grew up. Later he did concert security at the Hammersmith Apollo and toured with Simple Minds, Iron Maiden, Boy George and Madonna.
"She never spoke to anyone," he recalls of Madonna. "All I remember was every morning she'd go for a run surrounded by about five men." He was working as a fire officer at an exhibition centre when he was approached about a job on a new TV talent show that was to become the phenomenon Pop Idol.
The show's incredible success - and Simon's meteoric rise to TV's Mr Nasty - transformed Tony's life. But on that first meeting he didn't have a clue what to expect. "I didn't even know who Simon Cowell was," he admits. "I went to meet him downstairs by his car to bring him up to the studios, and that was it. I had no idea these shows would get so big."
Being the celebrities' minder took Tony to some of the world's most glamorous locations.
He also got to know many of the contestants. He says: "It's interesting seeing the change in them. They'd come across all modest but backstage... well, about 90% of them had massive egos and thought they were superstars.
"I can't believe that Emma Chawner was back again this year. A couple of years ago she turned up in something that looked like a wedding dress. She looked awful.
This year it was even worse. They're all for real though, all the really bad acts. They think they're good."
So who was the worst contestant? Tony, who's now starting an acting career, says: "Probably DJ Talent from Britain's Got Talent. He's a lovely fella who thinks he's a major celebrity and was genuinely disappointed he didn't get a record deal from Simon.
"I still see quite a few of the contestants, including DJ Talent and Austin Drage and Rachel Hylton from last year's X Factor.
"When I see any of the contestants they'll say, 'You know Simon, why hasn't he given me a record deal yet?'" What about his favourite contestant? "Chico," he nods. "He's a really nice guy and invited me to his daughter's birthday party. Rowetta from the first series was a lovely woman.
"And I still see George Sampson. He's a great kid."
Tony, who friends describe as a gentle giant, is currently single, having split from his partner of 18 years, Michiela, last December. The months he spent away filming the shows put a strain on his relationship and he missed spending time with their children, Michael, 17, Tyler, 10, Paris, eight, Anthony, five, and oneyear-old Alayia.
Being on X Factor made him a minor celebrity. Tony says: "I'd get people asking to have their photo taken with me. I thought it was weird.
"One time a woman came up to me and said she was going to sleep with me that night.
"I was a bit shocked and I told her to go away. Back then I was happy with a wife and kids. But I suppose if it happened now, maybe I'd agree!" But not all the attention was welcome.
He says: "In pubs and blokes have come up saying, 'Yeah, I can bash you,' as though they had a point to prove. They think I'm hard, but I'm one of the softest people you'll ever meet."
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