Talking about how she feels Simon’s comments have affected her, Dionne said:

“I was really hurt. What was difficult was that he totally contradicted himself. He started the series by saying that I was fantastic and then by the second week he’d decided that I was a backing singer.”

“It’s been even harder for me because, until the show, Simon was my idol. The first time I walked into the studio I was totally star struck. I was so in awe of him. But his treatment of me has destroyed the illusion I had of him and that hurts. He’s undermined my self-belief and right now I don’t know how I’ll recover. His opinion was so important to me.”

“It just feels that it was so much about politics and not just talent. I love Ashley but, on the night, he was the one who messed up his performance. I’d have loved Simon just to put his ego behind him and see the potential in me as an artist and not just as a rival to his acts.”