When Simon Cowell and his fellow X Factor judges were choosing the young singers to form One Direction, it was Liam Payne he was certain of.

“He was the stand-out audition,” the music mogul said, confidently, as a Polaroid of the then 16-year-old was placed on top of the smiling, fresh faces of Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson. Zayn Malik soon followed. The judges agreed Payne could be the “leader”.

From footage of the process, the creation of a pop phenomenon seemingly took just a few minutes.

“I’m in a boy band,” Payne excitedly told his dad in a text message after discovering he had been selected. He had no idea then how his life was going to change.

One Direction did not win the X Factor in 2010. That title went to Matt Cardle, with Rebecca Ferguson named runner-up. Beyond the hype around the series, only a few contestants, winners or otherwise, found lasting success. Leona Lewis, Little Mix, Olly Murs and Alexandra Burke were among a handful who shed the reality TV label and had sustained careers.

But Cowell‘s group went on to eclipse every other act that appeared on the show, before or after. The heady days of boy band mania in the 1990s and early 2000s involving Take That, Boyzone, Backstreet Boys and NSync had ended, and One Direction more than filled the gap.

They might have been “the cutest boyband ever”, as X Factor judge Nicole Scherzinger described them during the selection process, but they were also five talented young singers who sang well-crafted, catchy pop songs.

From the release of their debut single, What Makes You Beautiful in 2011, their rise seemed inevitable. Payne co-wrote songs on all their albums.

One Direction became one of the biggest pop groups in the world, releasing five albums, embarking on four world tours and starring in a film. But just five years after their formation in 2010, Malik left the group, and the band announced their indefinite hiatus the following year.

Payne, who was born in Wolverhampton, had wanted to be a singer from a young age. His first audition for the X Factor had actually been in 2008 when he was 14, two years before he was placed in One Direction.

“I think about singing all the time,” he told the cameras following the hopefuls, before singing Fly Me To The Moon in front of the judges. Cowell liked him and put him through the first round, but ultimately decided he was too young.

As a solo star, he signed a deal with Capitol Records, had hits including Strip That Down and Get Low, and worked with a range of high-profile artists. But as his former bandmates found varying degrees of solo success – Styles hitting similar heights to One Direction as an artist in his own right – Payne seemingly struggled to find his place.

After achieving his childhood dream, his path followed that of so many stars who find stratospheric fame at a young age. In interviews, he spoke candidly about his struggles with mental health and addiction to alcohol.

“For some certain circumstances – I’m quite lucky to be here still, which is something I’ve never really shared with anyone,” he told former soldier and TV personality Ant Middleton on his Straight Talking show in 2019.

“I can’t go too deep into it because I don’t know how I feel myself. I still haven’t made my peace with it, to be honest.”

He continued: “There’s times where that level of loneliness and people getting into you every day. Just every so often, you’re like, when will this end? That’s almost nearly killed me a couple of times.”

In an interview with Diary Of A CEO podcast host Steven Bartlett, he described struggling with alcoholism at the peak of his success with One Direction, and hitting “rock bottom”. His problems with drinking continued during the pandemic, but in 2023 he shared a YouTube video telling fans he was six months sober, after spending nearly 100 days in rehab in the US.

In his personal life, he had a relationship with Girls Aloud star Cheryl, having first met her as a teenager during that first X Factor audition when she was a judge in 2008. “I like you, I think you’re really cute,” she famously told him back then, saying he had charisma and a “cheeky” style when he winked at her. In March 2017, they announced the birth of their son, Bear, but split the following year.

At the time of his death, he was in a relationship with US model and influencer Kate Cassidy, who had been with him in Argentina to see a concert by his former bandmate Horan. He had faced some criticism on social media over his behaviour at the show, leading to fans circulating old clips of him. However, footage he posted just hours before he died seemed to suggest he was enjoying his trip.

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Payne’s death aged 31 is a devastating end to a young life, and while the full circumstances are not yet known, some musicians in their tributes have called for more support behind the scenes. As documentaries on huge stars such as Taylor Swift, Lewis Capaldi and Selena Gomez have shown in recent years, behind the glamour and fortune, the reality of fame can often be harsh and often lonely.

In 2020, marking One Direction’s 10th anniversary, Payne shared a screenshot of that text message he had sent to his dad, telling him he was in a boyband, all those years earlier. “What a journey,” he wrote. “Thanks to everyone that’s supported us over the years and thanks to the boys for sharing this with me.”

Speculation about a reunion had grown over the years. Now, if it does happen in the future, it tragically will be without Payne. The young star who always wanted to sing.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK

Former prime minister David Cameron has opened up about the death of his six-year-old son Ivan in 2009 – and described the “chaos” of caring for him while balancing a life in politics.

Speaking to Sky’s Kay Burley, the former Tory leader, 58, said the loss of Ivan – who had Ohtahara’s syndrome – was “completely transformational”.

Lord Cameron said: “Bringing up children is hard enough but if you have a child who is having seizures every day, is having to be fed through a tube and needs to be cared for all night as well as all day, who’s going in and out of hospital.

“I can still remember the chaos… of you’re in hospital, then you’re back home, then you’re back again. I had just become an MP [when Ivan was born]. I remember turning up for debates in the House of Commons completely exhausted because I’ve been in St Mary’s Paddington [hospital] all night.

“I remember this great blessing of having your first child. In spite of all the difficulties he had with the seizures and cerebral palsy and everything – you still remember this beautiful, smiling boy that you would rest on your lap and look after and love.

“The extraordinary thing about grief is to start with, there’s nothing but black clouds. But after a while, happy memories do break through.”

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Lord Cameron, who resigned as prime minister after the 2016 Brexit referendum before returning for a stint as foreign secretary under Rishi Sunak, has recently started working with a joint US-UK venture that aims to develop 40 new treatments for rare diseases in the next decade.

The partnership between the University of Oxford and the Harrington Discovery Institute in Cleveland, Ohio sets out to bring together academia, pharmaceutical companies, philanthropy and venture capital, Lord Cameron has said. He will be the chair of the centre’s advisory council.

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He told Sky News he believes Ivan’s life “could be very different” if he was born today, saying he and his wife Samantha “didn’t really get an answer” on Ivan’s condition.

“Back then, the first genome was being sequenced, the whole code of the human being – it took seven years and cost $2bn,” he said.

“Today, you can sequence a genome in an afternoon and it will cost you a few hundred dollars so we can see the full DNA, the genetic, biological makeup of a human being.

“That might not provide you with an answer but in some cases it will.

“There are thousands of different rare diseases, but about 80% seem to have a genetic base.

“There have been children born with those sorts of symptoms [that Ivan had] who’ve been identified through genomic medicine, who’ve had treatments, and that has improved their condition.

“There would be a very good chance that if Ivan was born today, and we immediately sequenced the genome, you could spot what was wrong, [and] that you might be able to take steps.”

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Lord Cameron also said he felt “lucky” that he and his wife “took the risk” of having more children after Ivan. They share two daughters and another son – Nancy, Florence and Arthur.

“At the time there was no genomics and genetic counselling back then,” he said.

“[It] was, ‘well, maybe it’s genetic, maybe it’s not’. Could be one in four, could be one in 1,000 – who knows?

“I’m lucky we took the risk. We have three happy, healthy children.”

The former prime minister also opened up about assisted dying, which MPs are set to vote on after a bill was introduced in parliament.

He says he’s “got an open mind” and is “thinking about” the issue.

“I haven’t supported it before on the basis that I’ve always worried about vulnerable people being put under pressure,” he said.

“Once you have some form of assisted dying, what’s the pressure put on people by relatives? I’ve always had that worry and concern.”

But his mind was changed “over the years of watching this debate and listening to the passionate arguments that people have put forward, having also known people with things like motor neurone disease and seen the deterioration and know how awful the end can be”.

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In a wide-ranging interview, he also dismissed claims in Boris Johnson‘s new book that Lord Cameron would “f*** him up” if he supported the Leave campaign in the 2016 Brexit referendum, saying: “That’s not my recollection.

“Any recollection I have is that I had a proper discussion and argument – heated at times.”

Lord Cameron also reflected on a plan to sanction two Israeli ministers while he was foreign secretary, saying it did not go ahead because the work had not been completed and that he was advised it was “a political act in the wrong direction”.

But he added the plan was “a better option than what [Labour] have done in terms of the partial arms embargo on Israel”.

“We do back Israel’s right to self-defence. We just had two missile attacks from Iran into Israel,” he said.

“We’re trying to help prevent that from happening using our own planes and the military. It seems to me utterly bizarre to be banning some arms exports from Israel.”

A man in his 20s has died after a “medical incident” at the University of East Anglia’s gym.

Norfolk Police said emergency services were called to the university’s Sportspark facility shortly after 7pm on Wednesday.

The incident involved a man who had been using gym equipment.

He was treated by paramedics but pronounced dead at the scene. His family has been informed.

Police are treating the death as unexplained and said that the gym remains closed while inquiries continue.

Read more on Sky News:
One Direction star Liam Payne dies, aged 31, in Argentina
David Cameron opens up about son’s death