Simon Cowell was forced to pull out of the audition stages for the next season of ITV’s “Britain’s Got Talent” due to the flu. His fellow “X-Factor” judge Louis Walsh stepped in to fill his place on the panel with regulars Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan.

Louis Walsh was drafted in to the Birmingham stages of the auditions for “Britain’s Got Talent” on Wednesday. An ITV spokesman said that “Simon Cowell unfortunately has the flu so Louis Walsh has kindly stepped in on the panel.” It is not clear whether Cowell will be returning to the auditions any time soon.

Cowell has said that he has been “knocked for six” by a flu virus. Walsh was more than happy to fill the music mogul’s shoes saying “I’m happy to be helping a mate out. I’m a huge fan of the show.” Fellow judge Amanda Holden admitted that she was glad Simon had taking a sick day saying how “It feels like the teacher’s off and I can mess about.”

The new season of “Britain’s Got Talent” is set to air on ITV1 in May. 

Bookies have already been offering up odds on the recent marriage of Katie Price and Alex Reid. It appears that a source close to Price has said that the marriage is doomed and that the main motivation for the speedy wedding was with making money.

According to Ladbrokes there are bets being taken on not only when the newlyweds will have their first child but the name of the child. The name Amy (after Katie’s mum) and Robert (after Alex’s dad) are the two most popular choices for the baby’s name, both being offered at 5/1. Ladbrokes spokesman Nick Weinberg, said, “They’re the golden couple and we expect interest to be on a par with our royal baby markets.”

As for if their marriage will last, a source close the couple said that the union would crumble once Reid “tires of her bullying”. The source continues by saying, “Katie doesn’t care whether this lasts or not.  Two weeks ago she was ready to dump Alex – then he goes on to win “Celebrity Big Brother” and she marries him. She knows it will make her another few million in magazine deals.”

It has been revealed that Price and Reid spent their wedding night with friends in a strip club in Las Vegas where their ceremony took place. Price’s agent has insisted that the couple married out of love and has nothing to do with cashing in.

Rumors have been running wild with the story of Charlie Sheen and wife, Brooke Mueller, after Sheen reportedly threatened her with a knife on Christmas. Rumors of past drug abuse, current relapses and other tales have been floating around Hollywood for weeks now.

Brooke, 32, gave an exclusive interview to In Touch Weekly, as she hopes to set the record straight.

She tells In Touch, “There are so many lies out there.”

The mother of twins was rushed to the hospital on January 20 after she came down with a dangerous fever after having her wisdom teeth removed. She delayed the surgery because of the stress over Charlie’s court date. It was not, as some speculated, because she had been drinking too much.

Carrie Underwood had a big night ahead of her last Sunday at the Grammy Awards, but the bride-to-be seemed to have only one thing on her mind: her upcoming “I Do” to hockey star Mike Fisher.

Underwood, who won Best Country Collaboration with Vocals for “I Told You So” with Randy Travis, told Life & Style magazine on the red carpet that although they haven’t set a date for the wedding yet, she already has a clear idea of what her dress would look like.

The…-year-old “Idol” champ said, “I want it to be pretty traditional. I think I want flowers on it – not real flowers. [The designer will] probably be someone I’ve worked with before.”

For the wedding, Fisher said he wants it to be a “good size wedding with plenty of good food and an open bar.”

Peter Andre was brought to tears yesterday after being interviewed on Sky News by Kay Burley when he was asked an upsetting question about his children. Since the interview there have been complaints made to Ofcom but the organization are refusing to tell how many.

The singer was asked during the interview, that was meant to be promoting his new album, how he would feel if his ex-wife Katie Price and her new husband Alex Reid wanted adopt the two children Andre had with Price, Princess and Junior. The subject was raised when Andre was shown archive footage of Katie’s ex partner Dwight Yorke, to who they have a son called Harvey. In the footage Yorke commented on Andre’s intentions of adopting Harvey, to which he said that the request was “disrespectful”. 

Burley then flipped the question around to speculate if Reid had intentions to adopt Princess and Junior. After looking stunned Andre replied “No one is going to take my kids away from me – nobody and I will fight to the death for that. I didn’t expect that, I’m sorry. I will die for those children.” Burley tried to change the subject with an obviously upset Andre by asking him about his tour. Fighting back tears and with a shaky voice Andre said “I’d rather just stop this if that’s all right?”

Bruce Springsteen is suing a New York bar for copyright infringement. The Boss says Connolly’s Pub & Restaurant on W 45th Street was not complying with licensing and copyright laws when they performed three of his cover songs while charging admission.

According to Springsteen, on August 9th, 2008, an unidentified band played his “Growin’ Up,” “Because the Night,” and “You’re No Good” while charging customers a cover fee. Connolly’s, however, had never ponied up the ,700 licensing fee for hosting live performances to American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, or ASCAP.

For skipping out on the ,700 licensing fee, the bar could now face a ,000 fine. “We had been after them [Connolly's] for complying for over two years, so it’s not so much about who or where,” Vincent Candilora, ASCAP senior vice president for licensing, told NY Daily News, claiming that the suit is about keeping other New York venues at a leveled playing field.

He also says it’s not about the multi-millionaire superstar Bruce Springsteen making a few more bucks either. “It’s not about him as a recording artist,” Candilora said. “In this instance, he’s simply a songwriter with rights.”

Mel Gibson’s publicist certainly knows how to take the blame for his client’s latest slip-up. The 54-year-old actor has fueled controversy once more after calling a reporter an “a**hole” on live TV, but his rep said the expletive was directed at him.

Gibson appeared via satellite on Chicago’s WGN-TV to promote his new movie “Edge of Darkness” when reporter Dean Richards asked him if he felt the public would receive him differently, referring to his 2006 DUI arrest, wherein he allegedly uttered anti-Semitic remarks while he was being taken into custody.

Gibson responded, “That’s been almost four years, dude? Let’s move on.”

While the actor appeared to be taking it lightly, even giving the reporter a thumbs-up during the closing of the interview, he was clearly heard muttering “a**hole” just before the camera signed off.

In Touch Weekly is reporting some possible trouble in paradise for “Gossip Girl” co-stars Jessica Szohr and Ed Westwick.

“They are still together, but things have seemed very tense between them the past few weeks,” explains an insider to the magazine, who also says Jessica’s been unable to hide her emotions on set. They are also claiming a crew member recently witnessed Jessica in tears returning to her dressing room.

Another insider claims that Ed doesn’t seem too concerned with his girlfriend’s feelings and may already be out on the prowl. The actor was spotted out with a friend on January 29 at the Melrose Bar & Grill in Los Angeles entertaining two women, with Jessica nowhere in sight.

“It looked like he was on a double-date,” says an onlooker to In Touch. According to an eyewitness, Ed and a friend took off with two girls after dinner in LA. For more details, pick up the new In Touch Weekly on Friday.

Heidi Montag has come out saying that her own mother looked at her like she was a “circus freak” when she returned home to Crested Butte, Colorado with her new looks. Montag recently underwent 10 cosmetic surgeries in one day.

The reality TV star says that she doesn’t regret any of the procedures but has spoken out about her mother’s negative reaction. Montag told People Magazine “I was nervous, but also excited? I never thought in my wildest dreams she was going to react the way she did. She was looking at me almost like a zoo animal. It wasn’t like I was her daughter anymore. She was looking at me like I was a circus freak.”

Montag, who recently released her first album, continued by saying: “I think she was most upset that Spencer [Pratt] was there for me and she wasn’t. She was saying how sad it is that my confidence is gone because of the music industry I’m trying to get into. I wanted to be the most beautiful, inside and out. It’s part of being a star.”

Former BFF and “The Hills” star Lauren Conrad was asked on “Good Morning America” her thoughts about the new Heidi, to which she simply said “It’s a look… I think it’s a personal choice,” she said. “Everybody’s different. … Everybody needs to do what’s good for them.”

16-year-old up-and-coming singer Taylor Bright was set to perform for the children at St. Margaret Mary’s Catholic Junior School before the appearance had to be called off. UK newspaper the Liverpool Echo had announced that it wasn’t Taylor Bright playing, but multi-platinum country star Taylor Swift.

Bright was in London on a small promotional tour for her debut single “Striped Socks.” Bright was going to play for a small audience of less than 500 when the church started to field inquiries about Swift playing. The Taylor Swift announcement had also been made to 40,000 football fans during a game in Liverpool. Bright’s concert was cancelled for safety reasons.

“Totally mixed up with Taylor Swift today,” Bright wrote on her Facebook. “She’s amazing and I’m just sorry I couldn’t perform for the kids at St. Margaret Mary’s.”

“I have no idea why they thought Taylor Swift would be performing at St. Margaret Mary’s when she was in America picking up her Grammys,” said Taylor Bright’s spokeswoman. “Taylor was very confused about what happened and very disappointed that the performance had to be cancelled.”