Simon Cowell suffered a breakdown this summer after the pressures of work became too much, it has been claimed.

Louis Walsh: "I don't want any more tablets and pills. I'm cutting out the lot, including cigarettes.

"I desperately need peace. I'm craving normality. I've got to work out my demons and come out of it."

Simon's breakdown is reportedly detailed in a new updated chapter of Tom Bower's biography Sweet Revenge, The Intimate Life Of Simon Cowell.

The book suggests Simon's busy working life had turned him into a "weird vampire", and claims he said: "My life was like a night shift. I'd forgotten the sensation of the morning."

The music mogul's company Syco Productions released an official statement regarding his absence from filming with new X Factor USA judges Britney Spears and Demi Lovato, claiming he had [uuid=c72b3c35-3fb2-4f25-9a00-b9703af2227e]come down with bronchitis.[/uuid]