I was constantly anxious, petrified of catching Covid ... now I've ditched my mobile and I really don't care about the ratings

EXCLUSIVE: SIMON COWELL ON HIS MENTAL HEALTH JOURNEY

- TOM BRYANT

SITTING in the garden of his London mansion, Simon Cowell is a picture of serenity as a whirlwind of activity goes on around him.

His nine-year-old son Eric is running about in an Arsenal shirt and his fiancee Lauren is showing an estate agent around the house ahead of its impending sale, while three of his assistants tap away on laptops.

It's the morning after the Britain's Got Talent final, a time when Simon would usually be wracked with nerves awaiting news of the overnight ratings.

But, as he quietly nurses a cup of tea while his beloved dogs play by his feet, his mind is a million miles away from the day job.

In fact, what we see before our eyes is a very different Simon altogether. A change he puts down to discovering therapy at the age of 63.

He says: "When I see my friends, the first thing I talk about is how therapy has had this super-positive effect on my life. I wish I had done this 10 or 20 years ago... it's like a weight has lifted off my shoulders.

Simon is so passionate about his new weekly therapy sessions that he immediately agreed when asked to be the first guest on the Mirror's brand new Men in Mind podcast.

In the campaigning mini-series, in association with mental health charity Mind, some of Britain's biggest male stars will open up about their mental health. Mind's research found that a quarter of men said that feeling embarrassed was the main thing stopping them from seeking help.

With one in eight men affected by mental health problems, the aim of the podcast is simple to encourage more of them to open up.

It's a cause close to Simon's heart, as he wishes he had not left it so late in life to talk about his own feelings.