Carmen Electra and Simon Cowell used to flirt a lot, but never dated.

She revealed: "We didn't really date, we just hung out. As soon as we met, we instantly started this flirtation and I mean he flirts with everyone but I went to his house a few times and had dinner - he likes to eat there.

"It could have gone in that direction but it never quite did."

Carmen - who has been married twice, to basketball star Dennis Rodman and musician Dave Navarro - retains a confidence in her ability to flirt.

She told Loverboy magazine: "I would say, first and foremost, confidence is the key because you need to get over your insecurities so that when you walk in that room, people can feel your energy and they are instantly attracted to you. You've got to have that sparkle in your eye."

Meanwhile, Carmen recently admitted she knew her marriage to Dennis Rodman was a mistake as she tied the knot with him when she was in "self-destruction" mode.

The former 'Baywatch' star explained that she met the controversial basketball player in 1998 shortly after her mother Patricia had passed away.

In an interview on 'Oprah: Where Are They Now?', she said: "I went into self-destruction (when I lost my mother) and I remember meeting Dennis.

"Dennis was the life of the party; he was fun. I started drinking. People couldn't understand why I loved him because he had a reputation for being a bad boy and what I saw at the beginning was, sort of, this gentle giant that was in a lot of pain."