Washington, December 2 (ANI): Simon Cowell joked that Britney Spears had been in awe of him after the singer looked dumbstruck on seeing the X-Factor judge backstage before the performance.

Britney had thrilled the reality show viewers with a string of comeback performances in what was her first UK appearance in four years.

The pop diva, out on a promotional tour for the release of her new album, Circus, is said to have fixed her gaze on the TV producer.

To be fair - and this may be a bit egotistical - I think she was in awe of me. It was like she was just staring at me. At the end of it, I just said ”Look - touch me - I”m human!” And I think that broke the ice, Us Weekly quoted Simon as telling KIIS-FM’’s Ryan Seacrest.

The 49-year-old further added that he was stunned by the singers professionalism and marked her performance 9.5 out of 10.

He told Extra: Literally it was as if the president was on the show. She was terrific. Very professional. I like (Womanizer], I think it’’s a good record. This girl’’s got huge star quality. You”ve got to hand it to her. She’’s a great performer. I would literally have her on my show every week for the next 10 years. (ANI)