'X Factor' winner Joe McElderry has said that he is "so grateful" to Simon Cowell and the music show for giving him a break in the music business.
Speaking to The Times, he said of Cowell: "I was quite starstruck when I first met him."
"He's one of those people you think, 'Oh! Simon Cowell'. But as I've got through the competition, you get to know him a lot more and he's really, really nice, a laid-back man, comes down to the studio and has a chat with everyone."
"People forget that this man gives people who'd never get an opportunity a massive, massive platform. I definitely wouldn't ever have got into the industry otherwise."
"I know 'X Factor' gets flak. It's, 'Oh, Simon Cowell makes money'. But it's not about that, really."
"I'm so grateful that he's made this programme, because I've had an opportunity in the music business, and I admire that."
