Simon Cowell is a first-time father. The TV star welcomed a son with girlfriend Lauren Silverman Friday at 5:45 p.m. in New York, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. The baby weighed in at 6 lbs., 7 oz. The baby’s name is Eric, after Cowell’s father.
Cowell shared the news with his Twitter followers Friday evening.
Very happy to say Eric was born at 17.45pm. Healthy and handsome.
— Simon Cowell (@SimonCowell) February 15, 2014
The famously cantankerous Cowell opened up about fatherhood in September, saying he was excited.
“I am good with kids, because I like kids,” Cowell said in an interview with BBC One’s Breakfast morning show. “I really do like them, and I listen to them.”
When asked how he reacted to the news that he’d be a dad, Cowell said: “Once I got used to it, I did get excited. … I think I will be a good dad, so I’m excited now.”
But don’t expect him to be changing diapers anytime soon.
“I’m not doing that. I wouldn’t do that — 100 percent absolutely not going near that,” he said.
The birth comes one week after Fox canceled the American version of Cowell’s “The X Factor.” The show, which aired for three seasons, underperformed in the ratings during its second and third years and faced stiff competition from NBC’s “The Voice.”
- This article first appeared on THR.com