Simon Cowell's mother says Gareth Gates should win Pop Idol.

Julie Cowell reckons the 17-year-old A-level student has the star quality to make it in the pop world.

But Julie - who rejected her 42-year-old son's image as the judging panel's "Mr Nasty" - said Simon had not revealed to her who he wants to win the top-rated ITV show, or the song the winner will release as a single.

She also told how her son was feeling the strain of being part of the series, which reaches its grand finale tonight.

Julie, 76, of Ovingdean, near Brighton, said: "I really like the last three contestants, Darius, Will and Gareth.

"I think Darius is quite charming, and Will is a brilliant all-round performer.

"I think Will could do brilliantly in West End musicals, I'm sure he can have a great career there because he can sing and dance so well.

"But Gareth has really got what it takes to be a genuine pop idol.

"He has the look which will appear to all the young girls, he can sing beautifully and he is doing so well to get over his stammer."

She added: "Simon told me that when the judges heard him sing for the first time, they were all absolutely stunned.

"They were at the end of a hard day after hearing about 200 auditions, then this good looking boy came along with a stammer and they didn't know what to expect but his singing was just amazing."

Julie was travelling to London with other members of her family today for the grand finale.

"I can't wait to see it. I've seen a show being recorded before, it's really exciting and the crowd really love it.

"Ant and Dec are so funny, especially when they dress up.

Simon is the second youngest of five brothers and all the family love the show.

"They will all be glued to their television screens watching the final."

She added: "The popularity of the show has gone beyond all the judges' expectations. I know Simon and Pete Waterman never thought it would be as big as it is.

"They thought it was just going to be some ordinary pop show but it is massive."

As a mum, Julie says she is worried about her son being dubbed Mr Nasty for his harsh put-downs of contestants who don't make the grade.

"All the attention he's been getting is a bit frightening as a mother. I know he's not the callous type he comes across as.

"He really is quite charming and always has been, ever since he was a little boy.

"His television image is quite funny to all the family, we know he isn't like that."

She added: "He has to be tough. He knows it would be even more cruel to build false hopes. The music industry is a very tough business.

"He says the last four episodes of the show have been especially hard for the judges as well as the contestants.

"They have reached the stage now where they feel as though they really know the contestants, so to lose one of them each week has been painful."

Now Simon has become a celebrity in his own right, Julie says when she is out with her son, people are continually asking him for a photograph or autograph.

"He has been overwhelmed by all the attention but he is enjoying some of it, especially from the ladies! He's still single, though.

"People have been coming to my house asking if he's in and can they have his autograph.

"We were in Mauritius for a holiday over Christmas and people kept asking to have their photograph taken with him.

"He's very good with people, he is always happy to sign autographs or pose for pictures.

"His fans have a laugh and a joke with him, they know he's not really Mr Nasty."

She said Simon is now considering whether to be a judge on an American version of Pop Idol, but he also has to consider his role as a record executive with the BMG label.

"As well as doing Pop Idol, he is also a record executive.

"Working in the music business was all he ever wanted to do.

"He has always been very conscientious and hardworking, and he has to think about what will happen to his record company if he goes to America."

Simon grew up in Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire with his family, then worked in the post room of the EMI record company as soon as he left school.

He then moved to London to make it in the music business, where he now lives in a luxury Kensington flat.

His mother said: "After Pop Idol is over he will probably go skiing for a holiday, but within two weeks the winner's new single will be out.

"He knows what the winner's single will be, but he hasn't told anyone, even me."

Simon's father, Eric, died shortly after his parents moved to Sussex four years ago.

"That was quite an awesome event, happening so soon after we moved here," Julie said.

"What helps is that we are such a close family. Simon comes to visit me regularly and all the boys come over to eat their mum's cooking.

"He even takes me out in his Ferrari, which is quite exciting."