My 'heart hurts' for Liam Payne's ex Cheryl and their son Bear
Perrie Edwards expressed her deep sorrow for Liam Payne's ex-girlfriend Cheryl and their son Bear. The Little Mix singer, who found fame on 'The X Factor' like Liam and his band One Direction, was once engaged to band member Zayn Malik.
Perrie, who shares a son with former LFC player Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, opened up about her heartache following Liam's tragic death in Argentina earlier this month, expressing her sympathy for Cheryl and their seven-year-old son. Appearing on Fearne Cotton's Happy Place podcast, Perrie said: "I think it just feels weird. It's just so sad and heartbreaking and my heart hurts for his family and friends, Cheryl, his little boy. It's devastating, I can't imagine how they must be feeling now. I didn't think it was real when I read it, it's in the air and everyone can feel it."
She added: "Me and the Little Mix girls were messaging [after news of Liam's death broke] and Leigh-Anne [Pinnock] just said it feels very close to home. Our careers were very aligned. We had a close relationship with them. It's honestly so sad, it made my body feel so weird when I saw the headline."
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Liam tragically died at the age of 31 after falling from a balcony at a hotel in Buenos Aires on October 16. He became a father to Bear in 2017 during his two-year relationship with Girls Aloud star and former X Factor judge Cheryl. Later in the podcast, Perrie discussed the downsides of fame and stressed the need for more help to protect young people and combat online trolling.
She said: "They are treated like a god and then everyone jumps on this bandwagon of like 'let's tear them down'. But people are human. Can we make rules with social media?
"I can't bear it - I try to not look as I can go into a hole of just looking at negative comments. Success is good but fame is different - there is a dark side to it. It's intense. I bring my therapist to work with me sometimes as I can't cope with the panic attacks sometimes."