Initially rejected from the X Factor at the age of 14, when Liam Payne returned to audition again two years later Simon Cowell felt the teenager from Wolverhampton was ready.
But if anyone can truly be ready for the level of fame that ultimately followed, it is hard to know.
It was never in doubt that Liam had the talent – he nailed his audition and while One Direction didn’t come first in 2010’s X Factor, they amassed fans and were signed by Cowell’s record label.
From there, the group snowballed into one of the best-selling boy bands of all time, performing to hysterical fans around the world.
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But this was all happening in the 2010s, when the duty of care standards were nowhere near what they are now.
Five young lads with almost overnight fame and all the related money and influence – today they would be given aftercare, financial advice, and counselling, whether they thought they wanted it or not.
Liam was often open about his struggles to find peace after hitting the A-list. He talked about drinking too much, telling fans last year he’d been in rehab, his ex-girlfriend recently accused him of sending her unwanted messages, and online trolls made unflattering comparisons to The Office character David Brent.
Pic: Ken McKay/Talkback Thames/Shutterstock
Paying tribute, Harry Styles’s Mum Anne Twist posted just a broken heart emoji with the caption “Just a boy…”.
And in a sense, Liam, who died aged 31, and the rest of One Direction never did get the opportunity to grow up – or at least not in any normal way.
From queuing up for an audition to be on national TV to going on international tours, their story is a sort of modern fairytale that at the same time already feels a little dated.
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It’s just not possible to imagine it happening quite like that now – TV has changed, there’s far more protection for those taking part in reality shows, there’s a better understanding of how overnight success comes with pitfalls, and better support for those who might encounter the lows that inevitably come with the highs of fame.
Liam will always be remembered for having the X Factor, but also for being open about his struggles with fame – while the circumstances surrounding his death are still unclear, his story is a cautionary tale of celebrity.
