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Nearly 15 years after reality TV made him a star, Liam Payne has died tragically while on holiday in Argentina, aged just 31.

The 31-year-old was one-fifth of one of the biggest bands in the world 鈥� One Direction. 

Liam was in the spotlight from an early age with his first X Factor audition at just 14, before going on world tours and enjoying album success, to having a child with a fellow pop star. Now, the world is now reeling from the shock of his sudden death.

Here we look back at his life in pictures.

A YOUNG TALENT

Born prematurely in August 1993, he was frequently unwell as a young child due to issues with one of his kidneys, but defied ill health to excel at sports, including running and boxing. 

He got his first taste of fame aged 12, playing the lead role in Saturday Night Fever. It was a taste of things to come, with his introduction to the silver screen coming two years later. 

In 2008, aged just 14, Liam auditioned to go on talent juggernaut X Factor. 

He sang Frank Sinatra's Fly Me To The Moon, but despite impressing the judges, which included his future girlfriend Cheryl Cole, and making it to the judges' house stage, he was unsuccessful. 

Despite the blow, Simon Cowell asked him to come back in a couple of years.

X-FACTOR ROUND TWO

In 2010, he auditioned for X Factor again. Resembling a young Justin Bieber, with floppy hair, an open shirt and bracelets, this time he sang Michael Buble's version of Cry Me a River. 

In a twist of fate, despite failing to make it through the competition as a solo act, Liam was given a chance to fight his way through 'Bootcamp' to compete to be part of a group. 

Paired with Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles; Liam became part of a boyband named One Direction. 

While they did not win the competition (they came third), they were swiftly signed to Simon Cowell's record label Syco Records and would go on to become one of the show's biggest success stories.

FATHERHOOD

In March 2017, Liam and Cheryl welcomed son Bear Grey Payne, with him sharing a photo of his son on Instagram calling his birth "my favourite memory I have so far". He later said Bear was a constant inspiration for him to be a better person. 

Liam's relationship with Cheryl ended a year later and he went on to be romantically linked to models Naomi Campbell and Maya Henry. 

In December 2019, he released his debut solo album LP1 including the singles Polaroid and Familiar, selling millions of copies. 

The following year, Liam became engaged to Maya Henry but the couple called it off after just eight months. With rumours of cheating swirling at the time, Liam later said he was "disappointed" in himself, adding "I've just not been very good at relationships". 

Maya released a novel earlier this year which she said was based on their relationship, and just this month issued legal proceedings against Payne, claiming he had been sending her unwanted messages.

THE 1D ERA

Often shortened to 1D by their fans 鈥� dubbed 'Directioners' 鈥� their popularity was widespread before their first single was even released, thanks to the exposure of reality TV. 

Each member had their own persona, with Payne - who hailed from Wolverhampton in the West Midlands - being known as the responsible one. 

With hit singles including What Makes You Beautiful, Payne had prominent solo vocals on songs including Stole My Heart and Change Your Ticket. 

Co-writing songs on all the band's albums, he was credited in eight out of the 12 tracks of their penultimate album, Four, including the lead single, Steal My Girl. 

The band sold over 70m records and 20m albums worldwide. 

In 2013 they filmed with then prime minister David Cameron, dancing in front of Number 10 Downing Street for a Red Nose Day music video. 

The same year they released their own movie - One Direction: This Is Us.

GOING SOLO

Despite their success, the band suffered a blow in 2015 after Zayn announced he was leaving the band, later saying he had been unhappy with the group's musical direction.

In 2016, after six years, five albums and four world tours, the band announced they were going on indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Loyal fans were left devastated, but each member of the band quickly embarked on their own solo career 鈥� including Liam. 

The same year as the band broke up, Liam began a relationship with Girls Aloud star Cheryl. 

Signing with Capital Records, Payne moved towards Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and hip-hop, with his 2017 single Strip That Down reaching the Billboard Top 10 and staying on the charts for several months. 

He also produced music for artists including Cheryl under the names 'Big Payno' and 'Payno'.

'PARTY FOR ONE'

Talking to Stephen Bartlett on the Diary Of The CEO Podcast in 2021 Liam, opened up about his struggles with mental health, talking about the "social anxiety" and "stress" of being part of One Direction, saying he was "quite lucky to be here still". 

The adoration of the band, with accompanying hysteria around their daily movements played a part, he said, in him developing an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.  

Dubbing it "a-party-for-one" he said he would turn to the mini-bar in the endless rounds of hotel rooms he stayed in during his teenage years. 

He also revealed he had been diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as an adult.

'GETTING A GRIP'

In 2022, Liam started dating the American social media influencer, Kate Cassidy.

In the summer of 2023, just ahead of his 30th birthday, Liam revealed he was in a rehab facility in Louisiana and was "100 days sober". 

He had "got more of a grip on life and everything," he said, after previously feeling like things were "getting away from me". 

A few months later he had to postpone his scheduled tour of South America after suffering from a "serious kidney infection".

In March 2024, Payne released his final single, Teardrops, co-written with fellow boyband star JC Chasez of NSYNC fame.

Touted as the introduction to a future second album 鈥� and his first new music in three years - it received mixed reviews.

And just this summer he had been announced as a judge on the forthcoming Netflix show Building The Band, an unscripted reality show putting together a group blind.

THE PRICE OF FAME

In 2019, Payne reflected on his life in the public eye and the loneliness and mental health struggles he had experienced on Sky show Ant Middleton And Liam Payne: Straight Talking. 

He said: "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." 

With rumours of a One Direction re-union always in the air, fans are now dealing with the certainty the five will never get back together, along with mourning the loss of one of the band's most charismatic members.