Simon Cowell has received a surprise phone call from Harry Styles reminiscing on the “great time” they had with One Direction.
The music mogul created the hit boyband – consisting of Harry, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson – on the X Factor in 2010.
Speaking to Hello! Magazine, the former X Factor judge revealed that the 30-year-old had rang him following his recent interviews where he spoke about the band.
He told the publication: “It was great to hear from him.”
Simon continued: “He said listening to the podcast reminded him of what a great time we had together.”
“I thought it said so much about him that he would bother to make that phone call,” he added.
Earlier this month, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan unfollowed their ex-manager on social media following him expressing his regrets about managing One Direction.
The former X Factor judge revealed his biggest regret when managing the band was not owning the name.
Not owning the name means that he couldn’t continue its legacy after they broke up.
During their time together, One Direction released five albums went on four world tours, and starred in their own movie – before they went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
According to The Sun, both Louis and Niall have cut ties with the former boss days after he expressed the regrets.
Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast, he told host Steven Bartlett: “The one thing I regret is I should have owned the name.”
“They own the name. I could have made an animation or something.”
He continued: “That was me being very naive. Next time I need to own the name.”
“It was obvious as soon as they went on the show that they would be really really successful.”
“They were the perfect group. They made a lot of money.”
