'Rudest man in showbiz' Louis Walsh's fury at Roddy Doyle's 'snub' to Simon Cowell

OUTSPOKEN music mogul Louis Walsh has described award-winning writer Roddy Doyle as "the rudest man in show business". His remarks came after the Booker Prize winner and best-selling author of The Commitments snubbed an offer of a multi-million-euro movie idea from one of the most influential men in the entertainment world, Simon Cowell. Walsh had recommended Doyle as the ideal candidate to turn a film idea by Cowell into a reality. But despite Cowell coming in at number 11 on Forbes Rich list with $80m (€61.1m) under his belt -- and being the brain child behind the most successful television shows in modern times -- the former English and geography teacher from Kilbarrack, Dublin, had no idea who Cowell was. "Of all my time in showbusiness, the biggest disappointment of a well-known personality I have ever come in contact with was Roddy Doyle. By far," says Walsh. "I rang him one day with a fantastic offer. Simon Cowell had an idea for a movie that would be huge and I thought of Roddy, that it would be a great opportunity for him and I rang him to put it to him. "He was just so rude. The rudest man in show business," claimed the X Factor judge. "I said: 'Roddy, Simon Cowell has an idea for a movie and I thought of you.' It was a huge opportunity. Huge. "But he just said 'Simon who?' He claimed not to know who he was. "And he was just as rude to me. That was it, I thought. Never again." A spokesperson for Doyle, one of Ireland's best-known writers, said the author did not want to comment on the matter. Meanwhile, Walsh, who is reportedly set to double his pay cheque for the upcoming X Factor series that kicks off next month, says this could be his final run with the massive hit show. "This could be my last season, who knows? So I want to have as much fun as possible. If I get the over 25s again this year I won't be happy but I do think an Irish person has the chance to win it. We have so much talent here; we just need the work ethic." He added: "We are only as good as the contestants who walk through that door -- this year the show has to be bigger and better. If we work hard we can make this the biggest show on TV." Responding to comments made by British singer Cheryl Cole last week that he had publicly put pressure on Girls Aloud to lose weight, the Mayo-born pop boss said: "I don't tell them in a heavy-handed way -- but if they want to be famous and rich and happy and marry the one they love most, then they have to look good. And if you look good, you feel good." Walsh, who credits U2 boss Paul McGuiness as his biggest influence -- describing him as " the best music manager in the world" -- has carved his career from picking talent from obscurity and making them multi-million euro acts. So far he has made over 20 young acts multi-millionaires including Westlife, Boyzone, JLS and Girls Aloud. Jedward, who will be representing Ireland at the Eurovision finals in May, are on course to make their fourth million this year at the tender age of 21.