Simon Cowell has refused to deny speculation that he is to become a father.

As previously reported, it has widely been suggested in the media that the music mogul has impregnated friend Lauren Silverman, with the prospective baby ten weeks down the line.

The Daily Mail meanwhile reported that her husband Andrew Silverman had filed for divorce in mid-July.

When asked about the issue at the Television Critics Association meeting in Beverly Hills on Thursday (August 1), Cowell joked that he hadn't read the papers yet, before saying:

"Unfortunately at this moment I have to keep it private."

He later told People: "There are a lot of things I will eventually clear up when the time is right, but I really have to be sensitive because there's a lot of people's feelings involved here."

Cowell's mother meanwhile recently went on record to claim that the X Factor man would be a great father.