United Kingdom, May 16 -- Clay Aiken has recalled how Simon Cowell branded him "ugly" on American Idol.

The 47-year-old singer was runner-up on the second season of the talent show and he has reflected on the criticism he faced during his stint in the competition, with the outspoken head judge questioning if he had the right image to be a pop star.

He told Insider TV: "I think there was an interesting quandary about whether or not America was going to vote for the best singers or are they going to vote for the people who look like pop stars.

"[Simon] said I was ugly. Go look it up. It's in there. You can watch the footage."

But Clay - who came second to Ruben Studdard - insisted Simon was much more warm and friendly when the cameras w...