Simon Cowell ‘wants Strictly’s Bruno Tonioli for one of his shows’

Simon Cowell is reportedly hoping to lure Bruno Tonioli away from Strictly Come Dancing.

Bruno has been a judge on the BBC One show since the first series, with a reported £200,000-£250,000 pay deal.

But he’s admitted to having had talks with Simon Cowell about joining one of his TV series.

“I’ve told him to come up with something new and we’ll think about it,” Bruno revealed this week. “We have discussed these things for a number of years but it has never come to anything concrete.”

Speaking to The Sun newspaper, a source said: “Bruno is hugely popular with viewers and Simon appreciates getting him on board will be a huge coup.

“Convincing him to leave Strictly will be tough but he knows Bruno would consider if the offer excites him.

“He also knows Bruno could majorly improve his salary should he switch channels.”

It was previously claimed that Simon was keen to sign Bruno for his new dancing contest.

The Greatest Dancer, a new dance competition, will launch in January on Saturday nights on BBC One.

Bruno told The Sun that he was interested in the show but couldn’t make it work because of his Strictly schedule.

He explained: “You need to be careful when you’ve been on Strictly for 14 weeks, to then go on another show with just a month’s gap for another 10 weeks would be tiresome of the viewers.

“If he made a US version, I’d be more likely to do that.”

Instead of Bruno, Simon signed up Strictly pro Oti Mabuse as one of three judges. She joins singer Cheryl and Broadway and Glee star Matthew Morrison on the series.

Former Strictly judge and winner Alesha Dixon will host alongside Diversity dancer Jordan Banjo.