Sharon Osbourne slams Simon Cowell for 'X Factor' firing: 'He thought I was too old'

Sharon Osbourne has accused music mogul Simon Cowell of ageism, claiming he fired her as a judge on singing competition series The X Factor because she was “too old.”

Touching on her career on The Talk, which she co-hosts with Sheryl Underwood, Eve, Carrie Ann Inaba and creator Sara Gilbert, Osbourne revealed that she had turned down the opportunity to appear on US reality show The Masked Singer because she was signed on to do another installment of ITV’s The X Factor at the time.

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“I was signed to go to England,” she continued. “And then Simon Cowell changed his mind and thought I was too old. I was under contract and couldn’t do it. Simon goes, ‘She’s old. We need somebody young.'”

Pulling no punches, Osbourne, 66, then suggest that if 59-year-old Cowell “wants young,” he should fire himself from the show and “get rid of his man t**s”.

When The X Factor kicked off its 15th series – with new judges Robbie Williams, his wife Ayda Field and former One Direction member Louis Tomlinson in tow – back in September 2018, Osbourne initially claimed that it was her decision to step down from the panel.

In a statement shared on her Facebook page, she wrote: “Simon [Cowell] was so gracious to find me a spot on the live shows but at this point I really don’t think I’m needed and I would honestly feel odd coming in at this point. So I have decided to pass on the series this year.

“I wish the show continued success and as much as I love to get my face on TV you will have to do without me this season. Loves ya, Mrs. O.”

Read more: Sharon Osbourne says Simon Cowell ‘begged’ her to stay on ‘The X Factor’

Osbourne certainly isn’t one to shy away from telling the world how she really feels. Just last week, she took aim at today’s teenagers, calling them “rude and entitled” and accusing them of relying too much on technology to communicate with others.

“It is just life skills and social skills,” she said in an interview with Daily Star. “And this generation that’s coming up – 16, 17, 18-year-olds – they have very bad social skills.”