Trending: Cowell's crush joins tales with added X Factor

Simon Cowell admits he 'had a crush' on his fellow X Factor judge, Dannii Minogue (AP)

The news that Simon Cowell supposedly had a fling with his fellow X Factor judge Dannii Minogue filled the weekend's tabloids. The story comes from Tom Bower's new biography of the publicity-friendly music mogul, in which Cowell admitted that he "had a crush" on Minogue, adding, "it was genuine love".

Some question quite how far any frisson between the two went. And it's not the first time a biography has raised eyebrows recently. Last year's book on Sarah Palin by Joe McGinniss, accused the US politician of being a racist and a bad mother, who had dabbled in drugs and extra-marital dalliances.

But most salacious of all were the claims in 88-year-old Scotty Bowers' autobiography. The ex-Marine and gas station attendant wrote of having threesomes with the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson, as well as flings with post-war stars such as Cary Grant, Edith Piaf and Vivienne Leigh.