MUMBAI: TV mogul Simon Cowell says not signing the British band Take That was a "stupid mistake".

The 'X Factor' judge revealed he was "too late" when he went back on his decision to give the "Back For Good" hitmakers a record deal back in the 1990s and it has always bothered him, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The 55-year-old told Radio Times magazine, "I was just starting my record label and I remember this guy came into my office and played me the songs, and I said 'no'."

"And then about two months later, I started to see them written in all the teen magazines, which in those days were important, so I called and the manager and apologised, and I said, 'Actually I've changed my mind, I will sign them.' And that was it."

Cowell added, "It was a stupid mistake. It was pretty bad when they exploded ... but it happens."

Take That is one of the most successful boy bands in the history of the UK charts, and helped start the careers of another 'X Factor' judge- Gary Barlow and 17-time BRIT award winner- Robbie Williams. Currently, the band consists of just three of its original five members- Barlow, Mark Owens and Howard Donald, after the other two members- Williams and Jason Orange, quit the band.