Howard Stern has joined the Free Britney Spears movement after years of criticising her.

Howard Stern

Howard Stern

The radio talk show host has been a fierce critic of the 'Circus' hitmaker - even once claiming she "still thinks the earth is flat" - for years but he now thinks the singer should be in charge of her own life.

Speaking on his SiriusXM show, he said: "I think I’m Free Britney now, I think I’m full on Free Britney. Ozzy [Osbourne] bit the head off of a bat in a business meeting. He’s in charge of his own finances."

When Britney - who has spent years under her father Jamie Spears' conservatorship - joined the 'X Factor' panel back in 2012, Howard claimed Britney would be a "train wreck" on the show.

Giving his verdict on the panel - which also included Simon Cowell and L.A. Reid, he said: "I think we’re going to tune in to see her, to see if she can function through the thing.

"As far as any real criticism, I think Simon Cowell and L.A. Reid will do that ... I think Britney will sit there and eat a lollipop and wear a sexy outfit. I’ll tune in to see what kind of train wreck she is, absolutely."

Meanwhile, Britney is "100 percent confident she will take back control of her life", according to Billy 'Billy B' Brasfield, her close friend and former make-up artist.

Speaking about his pal, he shared: "As ‘unicorn like’ as the world thinks Britney is, she’s a very normal, down-to-earth person. She’s just in an extraordinary situation.

"We’ll be talking on the phone for example, and she’ll say, 'Hold on a second I’m doing my laundry.' The other day we talked and she was working around the house moving furniture and decorating. She is 100 percent optimistic and extremely capable and smart - and has a strategy and people need to respect that. There are a lot of people thinking they know what’s best for Britney but she is a grown woman who is very capable. I 100 percent believe, as does she, that she will get control back."

Tagged in