Liam Payne’s mother: I’m so heartbroken, when I made the last phone call, my child was still very happy but it seemed like the relationship was having problems and my child’s girlfriend was… see more

With only ever strong and positive words to say about one another despite their break up, Liam and Cheryl made co-parenting work the very best they could with both of them focused on protecting their son’s privacy and happiness.

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Did Liam Payne and Cheryl Cole ever get married? How old were they when they met? Here’s all the important questions surrounding their relationship.

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Following Liam Payne’s shock death on October 16th, questions around his romance with Cheryl have surfaced again, especially because she is the mother of his only son, Bear Grey Payne.

With only ever strong and positive words to say about one another despite their break up, Liam and Cheryl made co-parenting work the very best they could with both of them focused on protecting their son’s privacy and happiness.

An important woman in Liam’s life, Cheryl and the former One Direction star first got together in May 2016, eight years after he auditioned in front of her for The X Factor.

Here’s a full breakdown of their romance from when they first met, if they married, the arrival of their son Bear and their split.

Liam Payne and Cheryl on the red carpet looking into one another’s eyes
Liam Payne and Cheryl only had positive words to say about one another. Picture: Getty
When did Cheryl and Liam Payne first meet?
The majority of controversy around their surprise romance comes from this moment in their timeline as Cheryl and Liam actually met when she was a judge on The X Factor and he was auditioning.

Aged 14 in 2008, Liam sang Frank Sinatra in front of judges Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue, Louis Walsh and Cheryl, 25. This time around Liam wasn’t successful but he returned two years later when he formed One Direction.

However, the moment isn’t as awkward for Liam who once joked in an interview: “Let’s address the elephant in the room. Obviously, the future mother of my son is sitting in that chair. This is now an episode of How I Met Your Mother, so that’s enough of that I think.”