TV'S Mr Nasty Simon Cowell came off worse in a row with the angry mother of a wannabe pop star from Ellesmere Port.
Cowell had just savaged the X-Factor audition of 17-year-old Jennifer Jane Higgs when her mother Patricia leapt to her defence.
And Mrs Higgs gave the controversial music mogul such a roasting that the camera crew shook her hand afterwards.
Luckily the set-to, to be shown on ITV this autumn, has only made Jennifer even more determined to pursue her lifelong dream to be a professional singer.
Jennifer, whose proud dad Robert says she has the 'voice of an angel', had initially auditioned in front of the show's staff in Manchester on Wednesday.
She was invited back the following day and sang the theme from Titanic in front of Cowell and fellow celebrity judges Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne.
Mrs Higgs, of Dover Court, Stanney, said: 'She passed the first stage with flying colours but when she came up before Cowell, that was it.
'He said Jennifer had no experience and wasn't going through. He didn't give her a chance.
'Cowell intimidates all the children taking part, they're so nervous of him before they have even got through the door.
'I told him so and he said the contestants have got to expect that. I called him a horrible man, and he said 'I hate mothers'. I told him he should think about people's feelings more.
'Afterwards a cameraman said to me 'You're the first mum on X-Factor who has actually stood up to him and put him down', and shook my hand. I was still fuming at Cowell.'
Although all three judges rejected Jennifer's performance, Sharon Osbourne suggested she join a choir.
Ex-Stanney High pupil Jennifer, who is studying catering at West Cheshire College, said: 'When I didn't get through I was a bit upset.
'But now I'm even more determined to be a success. Nothing can stop me.
'I want to find a group and get some experience. Then I'll go back next year and try again. Simon Cowell hasn't put me off pursuing my dreams at all.'
