On 29 October 2008, Simon Cowell stated in an interview that he would be willing to buy the rights to "Top of the Pops" from the BBC. The corporation responded that they had not been formally approached by Cowell, and that in any case the format was “not up for sale". In November 2008, it was reported by "The Times" and other newspapers that the weekly programme was to be revived in 2009, but the BBC said there were no such plans.