Judges’ Houses in Marbella was probably the time when we actually felt like a group. It was the first time we auditioned as a band and sang in front of Simon, so we really pulled together.
That trip to Spain was the first time I’d been abroad, and we were in one of the nicest places ever, so I’ll never forget being there. I didn’t own a passport before the show. In fact, I’d never even been to London before my audition. The farthest from home I’d been was Birmingham, to go shopping, so I experienced a lot of new things very quickly.
I found Judges’ Houses pretty full-on, as we did loads of filming and rehearsing, so even though we weren’t supposed to go out Louis and I were a bit mischievous and snuck out a few times just to get away from things. We went to this restaurant and got some amazing pizza and sat on the beach and ate it and chatted. You could see the beach from our hotel room and it was the most incredible thing to me—I’d never seen anything like it. I just remember laughing my way through our time in Spain. It was amazing.
Getting through Judges’ Houses and knowing I would be moving out of home into the contestants’ house was so weird. I’d never stayed away from home for longer than a few days before. I think it was hardest on my mom because I was her only boy and she didn’t want me to leave. She still cries every time I go home and then leave again. I have to say to her, “Mom, I’m not going to war, I’m just going to work.”
It was hard saying goodbye to everyone and moving into this brand new house. I’d never shared a room before and all of a sudden I’m with four other guys in a tiny room with bunk beds. It soon became pretty horrible. It smelled like five teenage boys and it was so messy. I’m quite organized and I like to know where things are—that must be the womanly influence—but most of the other boys just didn’t care and they’d throw things everywhere. There would be socks all over the floor, underwear hanging from light bulbs and dirty plates. It wasn’t nice.
I had four bags with me and I kept them organized at all times. I had washing bags and bags for clean clothes, and they’d be at the bottom of the bed along with my shoes in a row. Louis was the worst for messiness. He’d take his clothes off to go to bed at night and just drop them on the floor. Then in the morning he’d get up, stand all over them, get new clothes out of the wardrobe and leave the other ones for days. Imagine eight weeks of that. Liam and I would clean the room sometimes, but a few days later it would be in exactly the same state again, so it was pretty pointless.
Having said that, a lot of the best memories I have from The X Factor were of inside the house. We used to have such a laugh playing games and eating together. Also, being on a red carpet for the first time was pretty cool. I wouldn’t say it was one of the best memories, but it was definitely one of the weirdest. I’d never seen famous people and all the hype that goes with it. If I’d seen a famous person in the past I would never have asked for an autograph or anything, so it was strange seeing how much fuss there was around people. I guess that’s why I find it so odd when people want my autograph, because I’m just me.
I’m handling being in the spotlight alright, though. I love the fans and the support we get from people, it’s just strange for people to know who I am without me having to go up and introduce myself. People think they know you already because they’ve seen you on TV growing through the X Factor experience. It’s a bit like being on The Truman Show sometimes. People think they’re your friend before they know you, but people are always really nice so I’m always happy to talk.
Meeting Robbie Williams on the show was amazing. I have to admit I wasn’t a massive fan before, because I wasn’t into that kind of music, but I was totally converted as soon as I met him. He’s got an aura about him and it’s very evident when he walks into a room. He was so cool and down to earth, and while everyone else had Rihanna, Christina Aguilera and Will.i.am singing with them, Robbie stayed with us all day and got to know us. That’s why you could feel the chemistry on stage.
You know when you watch a performance and you get goose pimples? Singing with Robbie was like that but magnified ten times over. I had a smile from ear to ear, and when I’m a granddad I can show my grandchildren the video and feel so proud.
One of the saddest times of the competition for me was when my granddad passed away. He was your typical happy chappie and he was constantly joking around and smiling. I have such good memories of him from when I was growing up, and I always will have.
He had been ill for a while and he’d had a few strokes, so in a way I knew it was coming. He was in a lot of pain and he was suffering, so it was probably for the best in some ways, if you can say that.
It was horrible not being at home around the time it all happened, but I was so glad that he got to see us sing “You Are So Beautiful” on the show—it was his favorite song. He said that he wanted that version played at his funeral, and it was, which was very emotional but really lovely. All of the boys came down to the funeral to support me, and it was so nice to be with them at that time. It really helped having them there.
CHRISTMAS CHEER
After the show ended, it was back to normality because we all headed home for Christmas. No one in my family treated me differently, and they’re still the same even now.
It was strange for me, though, because The X Factor was always a Christmas thing for us. We’d watch it all the way through as a family and talk about it. I remember watching it with my mom the year Alexandra and JLS went head to head and then seeing Joe McElderry win. Now I’d actually been on it.
Thankfully nothing else had changed about Christmas. I still got up, got my presents, had dinner…just the usual. I got an iPad, which I was so chuffed with, and also shower gel and aftershave and all the usual things that teenage boys get. I was able to treat my family too because I had a bit of money. I got my sisters nice presents and I got my mom some jewelry. It was really nice to be able to do that.
Everyone in the family was incredibly supportive. Sometimes my mom or dad would talk about the show and ask what would be coming next. I know they missed me being at home because I was always such a family guy. Going out never interested me, I was happiest at home with my family, so I know it feels weird for them that I’m not around.
My friends Anthony and Danny haven’t changed a bit either. They don’t even think about me being in the band. They still say I can go and stay with them whenever I want to and we’ll play Xbox. They don’t want anything from me.
I think some of my extended family find it hard because they don’t want to seem like they’ve changed. If they do something for me they don’t want me to think they’re doing it just because I’m in the band, when actually it’s the same things they’ve always done for me. Fame can do funny things to people’s minds and people sometimes overcompensate when they don’t need to.
The only time I really noticed a difference over Christmas was when I took my older sister shopping for her present. She’d always wanted a pair of Uggs but we’d never been able to afford them, so we went into Leeds to look for some. I didn’t realize how recognizable I had become, but literally one person clocked me and the next thing the entire shopping center came to a standstill. There was a line of people waiting to take photos of me and I was like “What the hell is going on?” My sister found it really weird as well, because I’m just her little brother! Sometimes I think it’s even harder for your family to get their heads around it than it is for you.
I appreciate getting to spend time with my family so much more now, because when I do go home it’s so fleeting that I make the most of every minute. That’s what made Christmas so nice. We all spent as much time together as we could and we had a brilliant time.
I stayed in touch with the boys a lot over Christmas. We were like big girls, saying, “I miss you. Are you okay? What are you up to? Love you.” We had spent so much time together that it felt weird to be apart. It was like being away from my family all over again in a way.
Not many fans came around over Christmas—I
don’t think they knew where I lived—but since then there have been quite a few things posted through the letterbox and on Valentine’s Day loads of stuff got delivered. There have also been some girls shouting up at my sister’s bedroom window because they thought it was mine, but I think generally my family have been able to get on with things pretty much as normal.
Interestingly, a few girls from school who were always the popular ones are now being very friendly towards me. I used to do alright with the girls anyway, but I still had to make an effort. Not any more. It does make you realize what the fame card does for you, but I’m very aware who is good for me and who isn’t and I know who I can trust.
Christmas was kind of a double celebration for me and the boys because we knew we’d got a record deal, which was just incredible. Once we came off stage after finding out we came in third in The X Factor we were all in a bit of a state. I told myself I wasn’t going to cry, but I looked over at Harry and he was with his mom crying his eyes out and that set me off. Harry and I were hugging and full-on sobbing. Someone said to us: “This isn’t the end, this is just the beginning.” But we had no idea what was going to happen.
I think as much as anything we were crying because the show was coming to an end. We were used to the safety and security of it and knowing what we were going to be doing each day, and all of a sudden it was over. That part of our lives was finished, even if our career wasn’t.
Niall was also in tears, but Louis was trying to make us feeling better by saying we’d be okay. Liam was being level-headed about it. He’s been told “no” a few times before, so he was kind of used to it, but we were all gutted.
We got called up to Simon’s dressing room and then came a classic Simon moment. We all sat there and he was looking at us and it felt like we were back at Judges’ Houses again. Then all of a sudden he said: “You were great on the show. Sony are going to sign you up in the morning.” Harry started crying again and we sat there in absolute shock. Simon hugged us all and said: “You’re going to be alright, don’t worry about coming third.” Then we all went back downstairs to the bar. We were allowed to tell our families but no one else, and we were on such a high.
We played a lot of gigs once the series finished and it was all new for me. I’d never even been to a nightclub before, although my friends used to go, so it was yet another new experience for me.
In all fairness I lived a very quiet, boring and sheltered life before the band. I enjoyed the simple things, like being at home in my room playing computer games, so absolutely everything that happened was a learning curve.
I loved doing gigs right from the start. I loved the buzz of being on stage and seeing the fans. The reaction we got was unbelievable. The under 18s nights were mad, but after the first few times we knew what to expect.
PLANS AND PLAY
I knew that by the time New Year’s Eve rolled around I’d be wanting to celebrate everything that had happened. I planned on staying in with my friends and having a few drinks and a quiet night, but it didn’t quite work out like that. As I’ve said before I’ve never been one for going out a lot, but if there was ever a time to go out and have fun, this was it. Funnily enough I got invited to a lot of parties by people—some I didn’t even know that well.
My friends were up for going out and in the end we had a bit of a crazy night and I woke up on someone’s bathroom floor. I got up and walked home and it was the first time I’d felt normal for ages. After getting so used to being in cars all of the time it was nice to be out in the fresh air, just wandering along on my own.
After New Year’s I headed back down to London. Once again it was hard saying goodbye to everyone, but I was excited about what 2011 would bring. We had a meeting to discuss our schedule for the year, which looked amazingly busy. It was difficult to get our heads around how much we had going on.
We all moved into a hotel, and we’ve basically moved around different hotels ever since. We’re all planning to get our own places but there just hasn’t been time yet. We did talk about all living together, but as we spend every minute together anyway we decided it might not be the best idea. Liam wants to move in with his friend, and Harry’s moving in with Louis. But Niall’s full-on and I’m quiet so we agreed we were better not moving in together. There was no drama; we were just totally honest about it. So we’re both looking for our own places now.
It’s going to be a big thing for me moving into a new place in a new area on my own. Up till now I’ve never lived in London, I’ve never lived on my own and I’ve obviously never been famous, so I’m kind of doing everything at once. But it will be nice to live out of a wardrobe again instead of a suitcase. I have gotten very good at packing, but it’s much more comforting when you knew where everything is and you’ve got a base, so having a place will make a big difference.
We spent most of January either doing gigs or starting work on the album in various recording studios. For me, the best part of being in the band is the time we spend in the studio. I love the whole lifestyle of us all hanging out together and ordering in pizza! The studio is much more fun when you’re in a band because you’ve always got someone to mess around, play games and do some writing with. We’re co-writing a lot of the album, which I love because I’ve always been into writing poetry. To me writing a song is the same as writing poetry, with a melody in the background. Studio life for me is perfect.
In February we headed to LA to do some work on the album, which was absolutely crazy. It’s a different world out there, though at one point I was worried I wasn’t even going to get into the country. All the other guys went through passport control fine, then a woman stopped me, called over our tour manager Paul and said: “There’s a problem with him. He needs to go in the back.” They took me into a room and I thought they were going to keep me there for hours, but thankfully the women who came to talk to me knew who Simon Cowell was and knew I was in a band. In the end I was interviewed for an hour about what I was doing there and why I was visiting America. It turned out that my name was flagged up as similar to that of someone they were looking for, so they were just being cautious. I got stopped at customs as well, but again I got through okay as the guy there was really nice. It was then that LA really began for me.
Everything in LA is so much bigger than in the UK. The roads are about five times the size, and even a regular takeout is like a large over here. A large is like a bucket. When we arrived at the hotel this man greeted us at the door saying: “Oh my god, the boys are here. Whaddup? Come inside.” People were walking along the street giving out water and telling you to have a nice day. Can you imagine anyone doing that in the UK? Everything seems sugar coated over there.
Being in the studio there and recording with the RedOne team was brilliant because they’re so famous and have worked with so many massive artists. But they were just nice, normal guys. The weather was warm and sunny, so we were in t-shirts and shorts and loving every minute of it. We went out to eat quite a lot.
We also did a lot of shopping over there. I love high-top sneakers and I bought loads of pairs because they’re so much cheaper there. They even cover sneakers in cling film so you can’t damage them when you pick them up, and I love the fact they have so much respect for their sneakers. I’ve always treated my sneakers well. I used to keep all of mine in boxes to keep them looking nice.
I bought a pair of limited edition, black Nike high tops that cost me around $300. I know it’s a lot but they’re amazing. They’ve sat at home in my wardrobe because I’m too scared to wear them.
I’m getting more used to traveling now. I hated flying the first time when we went to Spain, but now I don’t mind it at all. I did miss England a bit, though. I had a brilliant time and I’m looking forward to going away again, but I did feel happy when we landed back in the UK. But then we had the craziest experience when we got back to Heathrow. We were told that there were about 200 people waiting for us, so we were ready to sign autographs and things. But when we wal
ked out this whole swarm of people came towards us, so we had to run back inside the airport. There was no plan, so we just held on to each other and ran. We only had Paul, our tour manager with us, as well as some of the airport security, so we just had to go for it. There must have been about 600 to 700 girls and my t-shirt and hair were pulled, and Louis had half of his hoodie ripped off. We ran into a car parking booth and locked the door and all these girls were outside the glass, looking in at us. It was a bit like a zombie film. In the end Paul had to call a police riot van and get us out. It was the most hectic thing I’ve ever been through in my life.
THIS IS IT!
The tour rehearsals for the X Factor tour went surprisingly well for me—even the dancing. My confidence has improved so much since Bootcamp and I can have much more of a laugh with the boys about it all. I ended up really enjoying it and we learned so much. We were really excited when we heard we were going on the tour, and it was as great as we hoped. It was like being on the show, but not as crazy. We got time off to shop, we got a chance to have a lie-in, and we got to hang out together and eat nice food. Then every night we got to go on stage and be pop stars. I honestly can’t think of anything better than that.
The reaction we got was unbelievable, and people of all ages were screaming at us all and having the best time. A year ago the thought of being on stage in front of that many people would have been enough to make me physically sick, but now I go out and walk around the stage and I feel so much more confident. It’s absolutely the best feeling.