Strop Idols

They came from all over Britain to follow their dream of being the next Will Young or Gareth Gates.

But after a verbal mauling from Simon Cowell, the pitiless judge of Pop Idol 2, many of the young hopefuls clearly wished they had not bothered.

Some flew into a rage - one reject even threatened to punch Mr Cowell if he saw him in the street - while others were left in tears.

But the 43-year-old millionaire was unrepentant at his merciless criticism of three-quarters of those who auditioned for the ITV talent show.

'I don't care if they cry,' he said. 'Telling someone they have zero talent is actually kindness.'

Mr Cowell has condemned whining contestants in the past, saying: 'Look at Madonna. She was starving in the street for years. Having a tough time for two minutes on camera, so what?'

In Saturday's first episode, contestants clashed with all four judges - Mr Cowell, music producer Pete Waterman, former Hear'Say manager Nicki Chapman and DJ Neil Fox.

But it was Mr Cowell's withering remarks - including telling one girl: 'We've had the musical equivalent of Valium' - that upset them most.

And they could do nothing to avoid their public humiliation because they had signed an agreement allowing footage of them to be broadcast, no matter how embarrassing.

Viewers were transfixed - 6.3million of them, compared with 4million who saw BBC rival Fame Academy.