Simon Cowell shocks viewers with brand new look: 'Ventriloquist doll'

Simon Cowell left viewers baffled over the weekend after he debuted a surprising new look at the Royal Variety Show.

The 63-year-old English TV personality, who is known for being a judge on various Idol, X Factor and Got Talent franchises around the world, appeared on stage to introduce this year’s Britain’s Got Talent winner, comedian Viggo Venn.

However, it was Simon’s transformation that caught viewers' attention, with some social media users comparing his appearance to a ventriloquist’s dummy.

“Is it me, or does Simon Cowell look like a ventriloquist doll?” one person commented.

“Oh wow Simon Cowell has turned into George Michael,” another added, while a third said, “Thought it was a George Michael tribute act when I looked up”.

“Simon Cowell with his best George Michael impression,” someone else remarked.

“Did someone send Bono instead of Simon Cowell,” a different user responded, poking fun at his orange-tinted shades.

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Simon recently addressed speculation about his changing appearance, telling The Mirror earlier this year that he has never gone under the knife and finds the rumours “hysterical”.

“I mean, it just makes me laugh,” he said. “I haven't had a facelift or anything. I've had a bit of Botox or whatever, but nothing drastic. So when I hear about this stuff, honestly it does make me laugh.”

Meanwhile, he told Page Six last year that he planned to stop getting Botox injections and fillers after a recent treatment made him look “like something out of a horror film”.

“There was a stage where I might have gone a bit too far. I saw a picture of me from ‘before’ the other day, and didn’t recognise it as me first of all,” he admitted. “Enough was enough. There is no filler in my face at all now. Zero.”

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Simon Cowell certainly wasn’t the only star making headlines at the annual Royal Variety Performance at London’s Royal Albert Hall, with Prince William and Princess Kate also in attendance.

At one point during the fundraiser, the Prince of Wales was caught on camera laughing so hard at comedian Tom Allen’s performance that he started crying.

William was filmed slapping his knee and wiping tears from his eyes as Tom joked about the tests websites make users do to prove they aren’t robots.

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