Lauren Cowell insists that being disconnected from the “distractions” of the internet has impacted the TV star in a “really, really positive” way.

Simon Cowell’s fiancée explains why he stopped using a cell phone 8 years ago

Lauren Cowell insists that being disconnected from the "distractions" of the internet has impacted the TV star in a "really, really positive" way.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

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June 18, 2026 3:39 p.m. ET

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Simon Cowell and Lauren Silverman in London in 2021. Credit: Jeff Spicer/Getty

- Simon Cowell is a lot happier after removing a certain constant distraction from his life.

- His fiancée Lauren revealed that getting rid of his phone has impacted Cowell in a very positive way.

- The *Britain's Got Talent* judge previously compared carrying a phone around to always having a toaster.

Simon Cowell's fiancée, Lauren Cowell, is revealing the secret to his happiness.

Appearing on *This Morning* to speak about the Raise the Age campaign — which calls for stronger protections for children growing up in the internet age — Lauren shared that the *Britain's Got Talent* judge is "ahead of the curve" because he ditched his phone eight years ago. And if you ask her, the change had a massive impact on his happiness and mental wellbeing.

‘The difference that it has made on him in a positive way, it’s been extraordinary," she said.

She also shared that the couple's 12-year-old son Eric is strictly banned from using social media.

"In terms of having a phone, he does have — I guess you could call it a brick phone," she explained. "It's a smartphone in the sense that it's like an Apple phone but there's nothing on it. It's completely shut down, so he can text and WhatsApp but that's it."

Simon Cowell and fiancée Lauren with son, Eric.

Dave Benett/Getty

In that way, Lauren, who has already taken Cowell's last name, pointed out that Simon has been a role model for Eric given his decision to reduce "those distractions and the noise" that comes from having a smartphone at all times.

"That pull that we all inevitably have when you've got a phone sitting next to you which is constantly just going off and there's notifications coming in and there's all kinds of things that are pulling you into that," she explained. "I think by not having it, it has just eliminated all that for him, which has been really, really positive."

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Last year, in an interview with YouTuber Evan Carmichael, Cowell explained that while he does own a phone, it is rarely on his person and often remains unused in his car.

"I hate them so much," Cowell said in the July 2025 conversation. "I think they're boring. For me, I think it's like having a toaster with you all the time… It's like, toast is nice and occasionally a telephone call is nice, but not all the bloody time."

Simon Cowell during the 'America's Got Talent' quarterfinals in 2024.

Trae Patton/NBC/Getty

Cowell explained that he initially meant to just take a break from his smartphone, but soon realized he was "happier" away from it and "started to dread" the idea of turning it back on.

Cowell is certainly not the first celebrity to take this phone-free approach to life. Nor the first to claim a significant impact on his day-to-day happiness.

Elton John has said he doesn't own a smartphone and employs staff to manage his social media presence. Woody Harrelson gave up having a cell phone years ago, noting that he didn't like having "an appendage on my appendage" and hated being "readily available to any human being at any time."

Always one to go to extremes, Tom Cruise famously established that not having a phone just wasn't enough for him. "I have no iPhone, no mobile, no email address, no watch, no jewelry, no wallet," he reportedly told *The Daily Star* in 2007. "I simply want to be with my children and make movies."

Tom Cruise, Ed Sheeran and Woody Harrelson.

Gilbert Flores/Getty; Karwai Tang/WireImage; Stephanie Augello/Getty

Similarly, Ed Sheeran hasn't had a smartphone since 2015, when he traded in his internet-connected device for a simple flip phone.

**"**I was just constantly in touch with a lot of people," he told *Therapuss* host Jake Shane in 2024. "I feel like with phones, everyone expects you to reply, and if you don’t reply, it’s rude. Sometimes you’re just not in a headspace to reply; you’re busy or doing whatever."

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This does, however, mean he occasionally misses out on huge pop culture moments — even when they pertain to his close friends. Last year, Taylor Swift complained that she forgot to tell Sheeran about her engagement to Travis Kelce because getting in contact with him means "you have to email him and then if you want to set up FaceTime he has to find an iPad and they have to give it to him like a child."

She added, "This is one of my absolute favorite people on the planet. And then when the news came out I was like, 'Oh my god! We forgot to call Ed!'"

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