Simon Cowell and Cheryl's sons are pals after X Factor stars end bitter feud

Simon Cowell has opened up his son Eric's friendship with Cheryl Cole's kid, Bear, as the former co-stars move forward following their feud.

The former X Factor judges were all grins as they appeared on the finale of Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway earlier this month following a bitter fall-out when the ITV talent show went to the US.

Simon, 64, said he was delighted to be back on good terms with the Girls Aloud singer, 40, on the star-studded series, hosted by Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly.

Things had previously gone south between the pair after the music mogul took the X Factor stateside, the Mirror reports.

Simon brought Cheryl with him to America back in 2011 but ended up firing her after he claimed that the Geordie singer had "lost her confidence".

The pair didn't speak for years, but the Syco star revealed they have now rekindled their friendship as he opened up about their relationship.

When asked if his 10-year-old son Eric has met Cheryl's son Bear, six, who she shares with One Direction star, Liam Payne, he told Woman magazine: "They have and they get on well."

Gushing about how much of a good time he had catching up with Cheryl on Saturday Night Takeaway, he added: "She hasn't changed at all. I miss her. We've had fun working together so it was a bit of a reunion."

Simon previously explained that he had fallen out with the Girls Aloud star soon after the end of her marriage to former footballer Ashley Cole as he told Radio Times: "My falling-out with Cheryl came soon after her divorce [from Ashley Cole] and was a nightmare."

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Speaking about the US version of the X Factor, he added: "We were all wound up. There was so much expectation on the show in America and I definitely wasn't myself.

"I was uptight. When I saw her I didn't recognise her...The only way I can describe it is that it wasn't Cheryl sitting in that seat. She'd lost her confidence."

Cheryl was said to be fuming about her firing which she kept private and only revealed how she really felt years later in an interview with Elle UK.

Speaking of her humiliating exit she said: “I can talk about this because I'm OK about it now. But I went through hell and it literally drove me mad.

"I became so desensitised, you could say terrible things to me and I wouldn't even think about it.”

She admitted: "Now I can say that Simon was right to get rid of me. I wasn't well in the head when that was going on, so it wasn't going to work. But he wasn't right not to tell me to my face.”

When asked whether the pair would work together in the future again, Simon said he was open to the idea as he told Woman: "Definitely, yeah, I would 100% - with the right show - because I think she's a really, really good judge."

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