THEY’VE had the world’s hottest women falling at their feet thanks to their cherubic looks, cheeky personalities and romantic ballads.
But being a global heartthrob comes with its fair share of drama – as the One Direction boys have discovered.
Louis Tomlinson sent fans into a frenzy this week after cosying up to Love Island’s Zara McDermott on a pub date.
“Zara is so happy, it’s early days with her and Louis but everything is going well between them,” a friend revealed.
The new romance comes just two months after Zara split from I’m A Celebrity‘s Sam Thompson.
Here, Fabulous delves into the most outrageous sex, relationship hook-ups and racy romps that have defined the personal lives of Britain’s most-loved boy band.
Harry Styles: ‘threesome’ rumours & Taylor controversy
Taylor Swift
Harry Styles previously dated Taylor Swift before the was caught kissing another girl[/caption]
Harry became half of a global power couple after embarking on a whirlwind romance with Taylor Swift.
The pair spent Christmas 2011 together, and were photographed on a ski trip – rumoured to be a double date with Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber. It is reported that Harry even met Taylor’s parents.
However, their relationship was plagued by rumours of infidelity on Harry’s part.
According to Vanity Fair, a source close to Taylor said the One Direction star had texted Swift to alert her to a picture of him during the rounds on social media kissing a female pal goodbye.
But when Swift searched online for the picture she found that they were “making out with their hands all up in each other’s hair.”
Swift’s subsequent music, including tracks like Style and Out of the Woods, is widely believed to reference their time together.
However, there doesn’t seem to be any ‘Bad Blood’ between the pair, as they were seen catching up at the 2021 Grammys.
Olivia Wilde
In 2020, Harry’s relationship with actress Olivia Wilde made headlines after they met on the set of Don’t Worry Darling.
Within months, Wilde announced she had split from her long-term fiance, Jason Sudeikis.
The couple were spotted attending weddings and concerts together, with Wilde calling their romance the happiest time of her life.
However, their relationship ended in late 2022, with sources citing conflicting priorities as the reason for their split.
More recently, Harry was linked to model Emily Ratajkowski after the pair were spotted kissing in Japan in early 2023.
The sighting caused a media frenzy, particularly given Ratajkowski’s previous friendship with Wilde.
Rumours of a threesome with Ratajkowski and Wilde arose after a DeuxMoi blind item claimed it happened after Harry’s Love On Tour show in Paris, which they attended together — but it turned out to be false.
Olivia Wilde and Harry dated for two years after meeting on a film set[/caption]
Sex Confessions and Scandalous Moments
Harry’s unapologetic approach to his sexuality and relationships is reflected in his solo music, with the singer telling Rolling Stone that his tracks are mostly about “having sex and feeling sad”.
In an unreleased song titled ‘Medicine’, Styles sings: “The girls and the boys are in / I mess around with [them/him] / and I’m okay with it.”
He also confirmed that his hit Watermelon Sugar is about the female orgasm and oral sex.
He also admitted on The Ellen Show to hooking up with fans and later hinted at a penchant for handcuffs during a game of Never Have I Ever.
And as the heart-throb’s dating history suggests, Styles is known to be partial to an older woman.
Chelsea Handler even claimed on her show that Harry had been romantically involved with some of her older female friends.
Niall Horan: Ed Sheeran row & MIC cheat claims
Ellie Goulding
In 2013, rumours swirled that Niall had a fling with pop star Ellie Goulding – allegedly while she was still involved with Ed Sheeran.
The drama was reportedly immortalised in Sheeran’s hit song ‘Don’t’, which made reference to the incident:
He sang: “I never saw him as a threat / Until you disappeared with him to have sex, of course / It’s not like we were both on tour / We were staying on the same f***ing hotel floor”.
Louise Thompson
Around the same time, Niall was linked to Made in Chelsea beauty Louise Thompson – despite the fact she was dating her co-star Andy Jordan.
At the time, Niall told Fabulous magazine that it was “one meeting turned into a big story, which is ridiculous”.
However, the drama didn’t end there.
Though Niall’s name was never actually mentioned on MIC as the drama played out between Louise and her Andy, cast member Ollie Locke confirmed it in a tweet:
“You realise this ‘friend’ is Niall from One Direction! #Louise #MadeInChelsea”.
At the time, Jordan expressed frustration, suggesting that Niall pursued Thompson despite knowing about their relationship.
Sex Confessions and Scandalous Moments
The 1D boys reportedly refer to Niall as the “good” one – but love playing pranks to try and get him into trouble.
Louis admitted to Australian radio star Smallzy that they would often lie to reporters about Niall’s sex life.
“When I was in One Direction, sometimes we used to just used to make up different people that Niall had slept with on tour,” Tomlinson confessed.
Zayn Malik: Text scandal & ‘strike’ drama
The X-Factor lovers seemed happy until Zayn apparently broke off their engagement over text[/caption]
Perrie Edwards
A pop power couple was formed when One Direction’s Zayn Malik first got together with Little Mix’s Perrie Edwards in 2012.
Things were pretty smooth sailing for a while, with Malik making his devotion permanent when he got a tattoo of Perrie’s face on his arm.
In August 2013, the pair announced their engagement.
However, it ended dramatically in 2015 with Edwards later claiming Zayn broke things off over text.
Perrie wrote in the Little Mix biography, One World, “it was horrible, the worst time in my life.
“A four-year relationship, two year engagement ended by a simple text message. Just like that. Even though things in my career were going really well, it was incredibly difficult for me.”
Zayn has publicly denied doing this.
Gigi Hadid
He went on to date supermodel Gigi Hadid and had a child together before calling it quits[/caption]
By November of the same year, Zayn began dating supermodel Gigi Hadid.
The rumours swirled for months without confirmation until Gigi appeared in Zayn’s first music video as a solo artist – PILLOWTALK.
The pair went from strength to strength, even appearing on Vogue as a couple in July 2017.
Zayn also featured a few times on Yolanda Hadid‘s – Gigi’s mum’s – Instagram page, including a picture of the couple with both of their mothers on Eid as they celebrated the holiday together.
In March 2018, Zayn posted on Twitter that the couple had split.
Over the next year, rumours swirled about a reconciliation, including when Hadid defended the relationship in July 2018 on an instagram comment:
“Seems like u guys tag me in a new post every day … pls stop.. it’s just negative […] for someone who is virtually inactive on the app, I don’t need his follow- my eyes are tattooed to his chest.”
And after another period of being on again – then off again – then on again, Gigi affirmed her devotion to Zayn once more when she clapped back to YouTube bad boy Jake Paul on Twitter in 2020.
Later that year, the couple announced they were having a baby.
Their daughter, Khai, named after Hadid’s grandmother, was born on September 24th 2020.
By October 2021, it was all over—again. But this time, things took a dark turn. Gigi’s mum, Yolanda Hadid, accused Malik of “striking” her.
TMZ broke the shocking claims, but Zayn hit back, denying everything and urging the family to “heal in private.”
Amid the chaos, Zayn pleaded no contest to harassment charges. Yet despite the drama, sources later revealed the exes were on “amicable terms” as they focused on co-parenting their daughter.
Fast-forward to March 2025, and Gigi is finally speaking out about their new dynamic.
In a Vogue interview, she revealed “Zayn and I do our custody schedules months in advance. That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t change here and there, but we help each other out and have each other’s backs.”
Louis Tomlinson: Cheat claims & ‘Babygate’
Louis Tomlinson was with, Eleanor Calder for years but cheating rumours swirled[/caption]
Eleanor Calder
Louis’ longest on-again-off-again relationship has been with model Eleanor Calder.
The pair first got together in 2011, but ended in 2015 when photos of Louis kissing a woman at a pool party in Thailand surfaced.
A representative confirmed the split, stating, “Louis and Eleanor split up two weeks ago. They have not announced this as they wanted some privacy during this time.”
The pair reunited a few times throughout the years and in January 2020 he even told The Sun that he was planning to marry Eleanor: “If you’re asking me if I’m going to marry her? Yes, I think so. And more kids, I’d say so,”
However, the pair reportedly broke up three years later in January 2023.
Briana Jungwirth
In 2015, Louis had a brief relationship with American stylist Briana Jungwirth, resulting in the birth of their son, Freddie Reign, in January 2016.
Some fans, known as “Larries,” believed in a conspiracy theory dubbed “Babygate,” asserting that the pregnancy and subsequent child were fabricated to conceal a romantic relationship between Louis and his bandmate Harry Styles.
This unfounded theory led to significant online harassment towards Louis, Briana, and their families.
Louis later spoke out about the situation saying, “I’m sure many people find all these little conspiracies interesting, [and] I’d be lying if I said it didn’t irritate me a little, but it’s the nature of the job.
“There are times when it gets very personal, I have my son, Freddie. He is the most important person in my life. And occasionally, [these theories] end up addressing things that are a little unfair.”
Zara McDermott
Most recently, Louis has been linked to TV personality Zara McDermott.
The rumours were seemingly confirmed when The Sun revealed photographs of the couple getting cosy on a date in Suffolk.
However, the relationship has come at a cost to Zara’s ex Sam Thompson, who she was with for five years before things ended in December last year.
Sam is reportedly blindsided by the news of the pair.
Now he’s been seen with the Love Is;and star[/caption]
Sex Confessions and Scandalous Moments
One of Louis’s candid revelations came during an interview with The Observer, where he disclosed an unusual detail about losing his virginity.
He confessed that he told his MUM about the milestone before mentioning it to his friends, highlighting the close relationship he shares with her.
He said, “I remember the day I lost my virginity… I hadn’t even told any of my mates and I was, like: ‘Mum? I know this is really weird. But I’ve got to tell you…”
Another moment that raised a few eyebrows involved Louis and his former bandmate Liam Payne.
During an interview, the pair cheekily admitted to being members of the infamous “Mile High Club,” a term used to describe individuals who have engaged in intimate activities aboard an aeroplane.
Liam Payne: Age gap romance
Liam Payne and Cheryl first met when he was a contestant on the X Factor and she was a judge[/caption]
Cheryl
Payne dated singer Cheryl from 2015 to 2018.
Their relationship attracted media attention due to their ten-year age difference and Cheryl’s status as a former judge on “The X Factor,” where Payne had auditioned as a teenager.
The couple welcomed their son, Bear, in March 2017, but by mid-2018, they had amicably split, citing difficulties in their relationship.
Naomi Campbell
In early 2019, Liam was rumored to be dating supermodel Naomi Campbell.
The two were spotted together at events, including celebrating the New Year together in Ghana, while their flirty Instagram interactions fuelled speculation.
On one post, Payne commented “perfection in a person… don’t give me those eyes” followed by a kissing emoji.
Sources claimed they were enjoying a fun, casual fling though it reportedly fizzled out after a few months.
