Washington, December 2 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 singer's 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)