Liam Payne Had Several Brushes with Royalty, from Queen Elizabeth to Kate Middleton, Prince William and Prince Harry

Mar. 15, 2025

Queen Elizabeth meeting Liam Payne.

As a member of the popular groupOne Direction,Liam Paynemet members of the royal familyon numerous occasions— and also mingled with royalty after he pursued a solo career following the group’s split.

Payne, 31, died on Wednesday, Oct. 16 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Along with his other One Direction bandmates, Payne metPrince WilliamandKate Middleton— then the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge — at the Royal Variety Performance on Nov. 13, 2014. William and Kate, now both 42, were attending the annual performance in London for the first time since they married three years prior, and Kate was pregnant with daughterPrincess Charlotteat the time, who would arrive six months later on May 2, 2015.

Performing that evening at the event were One Direction,Ed Sheeran,Bette Midler, Shirley Bassey,Demi LovatoandEllie Goulding, whoperformedat the current Prince and Princess of Wales’ wedding in 2011. After the performances, the royals met the performers, and a clip ofKate meeting Harry Stylesmade the rounds on TikTok years later.

After the event, Styles said that he told Kate “congratulations on the bump … [though] she didn’t look bumpy,” perNewsweek.

At that same 2014 performance, comedian Jack Whitehall addressed the royal box — where the then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were sitting — during his set to tell Kate that he had attended Marlborough College at the same time she did (before she attended the University of St. Andrews and met William there).

“I don’t know whether it’s appropriate, given the circumstances,” Whitehall said on stage. “But you were probably my first ever crush.”

Catherine, then-Duchess of Cambridge, departs after attending the Royal Variety Performance with Prince William, Duke of Cambridge at the London Palladium on Nov. 18, 2019 in London, England.Karwai Tang/WireImage

Kate gave an embarrassed laugh in response. Speaking afterwards, Whitehall said that Prince William teased him about the joke later that evening: “William came over and he was very funny, he was very nice but very passive aggressive,” Whitehall said, revealing that William told him, “Oh, so you were flirting with my missus? Oh no — that was very funny.”

The next year, in 2015 — coincidentally on the same day One Direction’s final albumMade in the A.M.was released on Nov. 13 — the group metPrince Harryat the same event. (The show, which dates back to 1912, raises money for the Royal Variety Charity, which helps hundreds of entertainers across the U.K. in need of aid.)Elton John,Kylie MinogueandRicky Martinperformed in 2015, and Prince Harry, now 40, had a memorable encounter with another Harry — Styles himself.

According to PEOPLE, the prince jokingly asked Styles, “When was the last time you had a hair cut?” Afterwards, Styles clarified that “at some point I’ll be cutting it [his hair] for charity.”

Two years later, in 2017, Payne attended a Queen’s Young Leaders reception at Buckingham Palace for young leaders who worked hard to make a difference in their local communities. This time, Payne attended without his One Direction bandmates, as the group split the year prior and were pursuing solo careers — Payne included. While there, Payne metQueen Elizabethand saw Prince Harry once more.

“An absolute honour tomeet the Queen todayon such a fantastic occasion. Privileged to share the room with such inspirational @queensyoungleaders, hear their stories and how they are helping to rebuild and preserve a sometimes broken world,” Payne wroteon social mediaafterwards.

In 2018, Paynemet Queen Elizabeth again, this time after the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey on March 12. In December 2022, three months after her death at age 96 on Sept. 8, Payne shared an oil painting in tribute to the late Queen that was over 4 feet tall and took the singer 50 hours to create, according to theIndependent.

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Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, Mo Farah, Liam Payne, Anita Rani, and Caspar Lee during the 2017 Queen’s Young Leaders Awards Ceremony at Buckingham Palace on June 29, 2017 in London, England.Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Payne was pronounced deadWednesday after falling several stories at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires on Oct. 16, Policía Federal Argentina confirmed to PEOPLE.

The worker also mentioned that Payne’s life might be “in danger” because he was “in a room with a balcony,” per Sky News.

“We’re afraid he could do something that threatens his life,” said the manager — who said his name was “Esteban” — according to the outlet.

Liam Payne attends the British Vogue And Tiffany & Co. Celebrate Fashion And Film Party 2023 at Annabel’s on Feb. 19, 2023 in London, England.David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty

On Thursday, Oct. 17,a preliminary autopsy revealedthat Payne died from multiple injuries and “internal and external” hemorrhages afterfalling from his hotel balcony, the National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office confirmed to PEOPLE.

The prosecutor’s office handling the case says a toxicology report remains pending.

The British singer got his start in music onThe X-Factorin 2010, after the judges teamed him up with fellow solo contestantsHarry Styles,Zayn Malik,Niall HoranandLouis Tomlinsonto form One Direction. Though the group didn’t win the show, they still skyrocketed to superstardom and became one of the most prominent boy bands in history.

The pop-rock band released four highly successful studio albums and garnered a massive global fanbase — with Payne co-writing hits like “Midnight Memories,” “No Control,” “Steal My Girl” and “Night Changes” — before member Malik left the group in 2015.

Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne and Harry Styles of One Direction attend a Photocall for the launch of their new film One Direction ‘This is Us’ 3D at Big Sky Studios on Aug. 19, 2013 in London, England.Jo Hale/Redferns via Getty

Jo Hale/Redferns via Getty

Payne kickstarted his career as a solo singer-rapper in 2017 with hit track “Strip That Down” featuring Quavo, which has over 1 billion streams on Spotify. He released his first solo EP,First Time, in 2018, and his first and only studio album,LP1, the following year.

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source: people.com