Liam Payne's downward spiral after One Direction - 'Pills and booze' phase to alarming appearances

The tragic demons Liam Payne battled after he sky-rocketed to fame as a teenager have come to light .

The star’s death was announced on Wednesday. The former One Direction hitmaker was with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy when he fell from the third floor of a hotel.

Liam, who was known for being one fifth of the world-famous band, found fame in 2011 after appearing on The , when judge placed him in a band with Louis Tomlinson, , Zayn Malik and Niall Horan.

Sadly, over the years, Liam was no stranger to the ups and downs of life and was dealt his fair share of health woes and mental health struggles.

Troubling 'pills and booze' phase

The singer turned to alcohol and drugs to cope at the height of 1D's dizzying fame, and Liam admitted going through a wild "pills and booze phase" which made his face "10 times bigger". Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast with Steven Bartlett in 2022, he said: "I was worried how far my rock bottom was going to be. Where's rock bottom for me? And you would never have seen it. I'm very good at hiding it. No one would ever have seen it."

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Asked about "moments of suicidal ideation", Liam replied: "Yeah. There is definitely some stuff I have never spoken about to do with it. It was really, really severe. There were a few pictures of me on a boat and I was all bloated out and I call it my pills-and-booze face. My face was 10 times bigger than it is now. The problem was, the best way to secure us was to lock us in our rooms, and what is in the room? A mini-bar. So I had a party-for-one that seemed to carry on for years. It was wild but the only way you could get frustration out."

Rehab stint after hitting ‘rock bottom’

In July 2023, Liam said he had completed 100 days in a Louisiana rehab after hitting 'rock bottom' and admitting he was in 'bad shape'. During his three month long stay at the centre, he had minimal contact with the outside world and spent a lot of time focusing on art and poetry.

"Turning the phone back on was a little bit scary," he told fans in a video. "I've been trying to learn to get to know this new guy..." He also addressed the controversial comments he made on YouTube star Logan Paul's Impaulsive podcast, expressing remorse for how he spoke about his former bandmates. "I took shots at everybody else... came across as really big headed. I want to apologise for that...that's definitely not me," he explained at the time.

Liam also gave a shout-out to his fellow One Direction members, revealing that they "have really stood by" him throughout this difficult period of his life. "There is a point when you hit rock bottom and you realise you have got to do something different as whatever you are doing right now isn’t working for you," he said. "I was in bad shape up until that point."

Strange behaviour on red carpet

In 2022, Liam left fans totally baffled when he was interviewed on the Oscars red carpet.

The hitmaker was asked about Will Smith and Chris Rock’s drama - that year the former stormed on stage and slapped the latter over a joke he made about Will’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith - but Liam appeared to debut a new, bizarre accent.

Sharing his take on the incident, Liam said: “I believe that he felt whatever he did, he had the right to do. I also felt there were three losers in one fight. He didn't know, being Chris Rock, he didn't do what he had to do, being Will Smith, and she did nothing, being Jada."

Liam continued: "It's a very sad thing, but there was a powerful moment for me to sit and watch one of the world's best emoters ever we've seen speak from the heart and I would rather take the beauty out of the situation than take the pain.”

Viewers tuning it at home were more interested in Liam's accent than his comments about Will.

"I thought Liam Payne was English...his accent ...#GMB," one person posted. Another asked: "Why is Liam paynes accent some sort of American Irish ?! #gmb (sic)." And someone else asked: "What accent is Liam Payne speaking in?! #gmb."

Suicidal thoughts

Liam's life changed forever more than a decade ago when he was put into a boy band alongside Harry, Zayn, Louis and Niall. But unsurprisingly, being in the spotlight came with a lot of pressure, with Liam candidly sharing his struggles with coming to terms with his newfound fame and how it "nearly killed" him. In a in 2019, Liam admitted that he'd had difficulties with life in the public eye.

"For some certain circumstances I'm quite lucky to be here still," he told Ant, "There are times when that level of loneliness and people getting into you every day, it's like, 'When will this end?' That's almost nearly killed me a couple of times." When asked if he'd contemplated taking his own life, Liam said: "Yeah, when I've been in a bad place. It's one hundred per cent, you know? There's no point denying it - it's definitely been on the menu a couple of times in my life."

Hospitalisation due to kidney issues

Earlier this year, Liam was forced to reschedule highly anticipated concerts when doctors told him to take sick leave following a serious kidney infection.

In August, Liam told fans: “It’s with a heavy heart I have to tell you that we have no other choice but to postpone my upcoming tour of South America. It’s something I wouldn’t wish on anyone, and doctors’ orders are that I now need to rest and recover."

It was understood that the One Direction star was treated at a hospital in Italy, where he remained for a few days, after being rushed to the medical facility in 'agony' with a 'serious health issue'.

Other worrying health woes

Liam was no stranger to health woes, having battled bouts of severe illness ever since he was a small baby. After being born prematurely in 1993, he regularly fell sick and spent a significant amount of time in hospital. Doctors soon noticed one of his kidneys was scarred, which resulted in him undergoing sixteen injections in his arm every morning and night.

In January 2022, the former star postponed his Here’s to the Future virtual showcase, after testing positive for COVID-19. In May 2021, he revealed he was suffering from a mystery respiratory illness, telling fans he's been "coughing" and "very poorly" for the past few weeks. "I feel sorry for anybody else out there who is also sick at the moment. But as the good old British people say, ‘It is going around," he added.

Message to Niall Horan that sparked concern

In a concerning video shared earlier this month, Liam insisted he and his former One Direction bandmate Niall ‘needed to talk’.

In a Snapchat clip, Liam said seeing Niall was one of the reasons he was travelling to Argentina and added: “It's been a while since me and Niall have spoken. We've got a lot to talk about and I would like to square up a couple things with the boy. No bad vibes or nothing like that, but just, we need to talk."

In the comment section, fans questioned whether Liam was OK, with one writing: “Is he okay? Like genuinely?”

A day earlier, a source told : 'Liam's behaviour has been concerning many in his inner circle for months. For a while things seemed to be looking up for him but over the past year there are fears he is spiralling.

'He's no longer around some of his old friends as he's relocated to America to start a new life out there.'

'Everyone wants the best for him but things are erratic to say the least.'

Lead up to death

Liam was said to have been acting erratically and had to be escorted back to his hotel room before the fatal fall.

It has been reported that the father-of-one had been acting 'erratically' in the hours before his death. The hotel workers reported "an aggressive man who may have been under the effects of drugs and alcohol". According to local media reports, Liam had been seen "acting erratically in the hotel lobby and smashed his laptop' before he 'had to be carried back to his room".

Sadly, shortly after the call, workers said they heard a loud sound in the courtyard. Liams' body was discovered shortly after 5pm.

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