TV presenter Dermot O’Leary has recalled Liam Payne auditioning for The X Factor as a 14-year-old boy, as he paid tribute to the singer following his death.
Payne died after falling from the third floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
He rose to stardom aged 16 after forming boy band One Direction on The X Factor in 2010 alongside Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles, having returned to the ITV show two years after his first audition.
Styles’ mother Anne Twist posted a broken-hearted emoji on Instagram, captioning it: “Just a boy.”
O’Leary, who hosted The X Factor during both of Payne’s appearances, shared a photograph of the pair on stage, captioning the Instagram post: “The worst news”.
“I remember him as a 14-year-old turning up to audition on The X Factor, and blowing us away singing Sinatra. He just loved to sing,” he wrote.
“He was always a joy, had time for everyone, polite, grateful, and was always humble.”
Singer Olly Murs, who starred on The X Factor a year before One Direction, said he was “lost for words”, describing Payne’s death as “devastating” on Instagram.
“We always had a good laugh when we saw each other, sometimes the catch ups were only short and sweet but when we did it was mostly about how annoyingly good his hair always looked, or our love for Becks, the old XF (X Factor) days and the tour we shared together,” Murs wrote beside a picture of the pair.
“Liam shared the same passions as me, the same dreams so to see his life now end so young hits hard, I’m truly gutted and devastated for his family and of course his son Bear losing a dad.”
Payne and Girls Aloud singer Cheryl share a son Bear, born in 2017, having been in a high-profile relationship between 2016 and 2018.
The Wanted star Max George said he met Payne while he was competing on The X Factor with One Direction, describing his death as “absolutely devastating news”.
“Over the last few years I had the pleasure of getting to know him personally and spent some treasured time with him,” he said on Instagram.
“Liam was absolutely wonderful in terms of support when Tom (Parker) fell ill, performing at the Royal Albert Hall with us for Stand Up To Cancer.
“He supported me a lot personally after Tom passed. I will never forget that.”
Payne attended the funeral of Parker, who died in March 2022 at the age of 33 after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.
US singer Charlie Puth, a co-writer on Payne’s 2017 song Bedroom Floor, said he was in “shock” after Payne’s death.
“Liam was always so kind to me,” he posted on Instagram, alongside a collection of photos of the pair working together.
“He was one of the first major artists I got to work with. I cannot believe he is gone… I am so upset right now, may he rest in peace.”
Rylan Clark said Payne’s death was “so tragic” on X, while fellow former X Factor contestants Jedward sent their love to Cheryl, his son Bear and “all the One Direction family”.
Socialite Paris Hilton also paid tribute on X, calling the singer’s death “so upsetting”.
DJ and music producer Zedd, who featured alongside Payne on the 2017 song Get Low, called the singer’s death “absolutely heartbreaking”.
American singer and rapper Ty Dolla Sign said he will “miss” Payne, captioning videos and pictures on his Instagram story: “Just talked to you two days ago my guy.”
A statement on MTV’s official social media accounts said: “We’re deeply saddened to learn of Liam Payne’s tragic passing today. During this difficult time, our hearts remain with his family, loved ones, and fans.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here