Simon Cowell has blasted The Beatles, claiming they would have failed auditions on The X Factor.

The music mogul - who once rejected the Spice Girls, the best-selling girl group of all time - says he would have kicked the iconic band off his British TV talent show unless they fired drummer Ringo Starr. “If The Beatles came on the show we would have said, ‘We’ll take those three - Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison - but probably lose the drummer,’” the 49-year-old said. “With Ringo, I’m afraid, we would have said ‘bad news’.”

Speaking in a US television interview with his Britain’s Got Talent co-star Amanda Holden, Simon also revealed what drives him. “I like winning, Amanda. That’s what excites me,” Cowell admitted.

Simon is now focusing on the career of Scottish singing sensation Susan Boyle, who will perform on the final of America’s Got Talent next week. Her debut album is due for release in November, and is expected to shoot to the top of the charts in America and Britain.