We had a trip to Sweden and another to LA, which were both amazing. We were in LA for three weeks, so we got to see loads more than the last time, but we had to keep our minds on the work. We still enjoyed it, because the work was actually a lot of fun. Every time we go away we get closer and closer, and there was plenty more bonding while we were there.
I do enjoy the traveling generally, but what I really don’t enjoy is packing a suitcase. No matter how often we do it, I don’t think I’ll ever get over that feeling of having left something behind. Having to pack all of your clothes and things, knowing you’re going to be away for weeks or months on end, is really stressful.
We’re pretty much living in hotels most of the time at the moment, although we did share houses at times, which was funny but full-on! We’re all going to get our own flats soon. Some of us are going to share—Louis with Harry and Niall with Zayn—but I think I’ll get a place on my own as I quite like my own space. I love the boys to bits, but I know that when we come back from spending 24 hours a day with each other I’ll want to have time on my own. I’ve always been like that.
We have worked a lot this year, and at one point I think we only had one day off in three months, which was quite mad. But everything is new and exciting, and doing shoots and going on TV shows is such a thrill that we just got on with it and had fun. And we’ve managed to pick up some good free clothes along the way.
I had a weird experience the other day when I was watching TV. I looked up and thought, “I recognize that bloke”—and it was me! We never got to see ourselves on The X Factor, so to see yourself messing around and knowing that other people are seeing it is just crazy.
We feel like we’ve already done some amazing things, and the album and tour are our main priority now. We’re excited about making music that people love, and we’ve got a lot of great things planned.
My main aim for us in the long term is to be big in America. That’s my ultimate dream. It’s going to take a lot of work, but we’re all really determined.
We don’t have many days off but we don’t mind. We all push each other and support each other. If someone is tired and we’ve got loads of work to do, we’ll boost them up and we’ll all pull together and make sure we get through it—even if we’ve only had two hours’ sleep. This is our chance to have an amazing time doing what we love to do, and we’re not going to let it pass us by for anything.
QUICKFIRE
DOB: 8/29/1993
STAR SIGN: Virgo
favorite…
FILM: Click, and I love all of the Toy Story films
BODY PART: My arms
FOOD: Chocolate
ALBUM: Echo by Leona Lewis
FRIEND: Martin, Andy and Ronnie
CELEBRITY LADY: Leona Lewis
SHOP: All Saints
DRINK: Coca-Cola
COLOR: Purple
TV SHOW: Friends and Everybody Loves Raymond
AFTERSHAVE: One Million by Paco Rabanne
PERFUME: XXX
GAME: Pokemon
IPHONE APP: Flick Kick Soccer
WAY TO SPEND A SUNDAY: Staying in bed watching movies
DATE VENUE: Cinema
COUNTRY: America
RESTAURANT: Cosmo. It’s a Chinese eat-all-you-can restaurant near my home and it’s great
WAY TO RELAX: Massages, especially when I’ve got a bad back
MODE OF TRANSPORT: Car
NIGHT OUT: Bowling
BAND: One Republic
WHAT COLOR IS YOUR DUVET COVER? Blue
WHAT KIND OF UNDERWEAR DO YOU WEAR? Armani boxers, but that makes me sound very diva
FIRST PET: A terrapin called Frederick—I’m very inventive with my pet names
DO YOU LIKE YOUR OWN COMPANY OR OTHER PEOPLE’S? I like being on my own a lot
LAST BOOK YOU READ: Forever Young by One Direction
LAST FIVE THINGS YOU BOUGHT: A Greggs, some protein powder, a PSP, a hat and some sneakers
WHAT TYPE OF GIRLS DO YOU LIKE? I like girls who are quite quiet but friendly. Looks-wise, I love girls with curly hair, but apart from that I’m open to ideas!
LOUIS TOMLINSON
THE ROGUE
It won’t come as much of a surprise to people to hear that I was always a very chatty kid and I liked to talk to anyone we met on the street. I went to nursery school in Doncaster, which was a lot of fun. I enjoyed being around other kids and playing games. I was obsessed with Power Rangers, and whenever I was asked what I wanted for Christmas or my birthday I always chose a new Power Rangers toy. The Red Ranger was my favorite. When I met Zayn I discovered that he was mad about them too, and we used to swap notes!
When I was four we moved to Poole, near Bournemouth, and it was lovely. What young kid wouldn’t love living by the sea and being surrounded by amusements? I remember going on the Power Ranger rides on the seafront and being really excited. There was always a lot going on and it was a perfect place for a young kid to be. I went to a school there called Uplands for Reception and Year One. Both years I was there I won all my races on sports day.
After we’d been in Poole for about two years my mom got pregnant with my sister Charlotte. We then moved back to Doncaster and I started going to a primary school called Willow. I never did anything that creative there in terms of performing, but I was very confident and quite loud. Starting at a new school was quite hard for me, as I was only six, and I’d left my best friend Alex behind in Poole. I soon made friends again, but I was quite cheeky and used to get told off for it. I wasn’t naughty as such, but I always liked to be the class clown and make people laugh. Luckily the teachers still seemed to like me. (In case any of them are reading this, I apologize for making that crazy assumption!)
In those early years I spent most of my time with my great nan Edna and great granddad Len because both of my parents used to work. My nan used to pick me up from school and take me to the park, and I was with her almost as much as I was at home. I used to have a great, great relationship with them, and every time I went around to her house my great granddad would make me an ice cream. I miss them dearly. My nan used to love The X Factor, so she would have loved seeing us on the show.
I feel very lucky that I’ve got quite a big family. I remember when my first sister Charlotte was born. I was about six and I burst into tears because I was so overwhelmed with the whole experience. I was incredibly happy, but I’d been an only child up until then so it was probably a shock to me. I’ve got four sisters now, Charlotte, aka “Lottie,” Félicité, aka “Fizzy,” and Daisy and Phoebe, who are twins. It’s great having that many siblings, but I did always want a little brother. I’m not complaining, because all of my sisters are amazing, but I would have liked another boy in the house.
When I was growing up we didn’t have a massive house and there were five women running around, so my dad and I had to stick together! I suppose in some ways it did teach me about women. I’m certainly not intimidated by them—because I’m so used to them. Having that many sisters has definitely helped me with children too, and people always comment how comfortable I am around kids. I absolutely love babies and kids, and the boys are always taking the mickey out of me for it. I definitely, definitely want kids of my own one day, so I can have that little boy I always wanted. So there is a slight possibility I could end up with around 15—20 kids if I don’t have a son straight away—something to be aware of, I guess, for anyone thinking of marrying me (though I hope it wouldn’t affect her decision).
CELEBRATING MY FIFTH BIRTHDAY
BIG THUMBS-UP ON SPORTS DAY
READING TO MY ELDEST SISTER, CHARLOTTE. LOVING THE HAIR!
Secondary school was a bit crazy for me, because I ended up switching schools twice. There were two schools in my local area, and the one I really wanted to go to was called Hayfield. I didn’t get in, though, and ended up going to another school called Hall Cross. It was fine there but I never really settled, and although I made a couple of really good friends called Dan
and Aiden, I just wasn’t very happy. Then I got offered a place at Hayfield after all and I moved there. That was quite hard, because I was now 13 and everyone else had been there for quite a while and they knew each other. I was the new kid, so the first few weeks getting to know everyone were tough. Looking back I’m so glad I made the move because it was a great school and I had arguably some of the best times I’ve ever had there.
I went through a seriously dodgy clothes phase when I was about 13. I used to wear jeans and England shirts. I also adopted the fringe-over-to-one-side, spiky-on-top hairstyle that was popular around that time. I didn’t take a massive interest in clothes until I was about 17—in those days I just used to throw on jeans and a t-shirt—but now I’m totally addicted to buying them and I love shopping.
After about a year of being at Hayfield I got into a band called The Rogue. I was on a field trip in Norfolk and I was sharing a room with my friends Geoff, Jona and Jamie. They were all in a band with a guy called Stan, who is now my best friend. We all got really friendly and while we were heading home on the coach, Geoff said they were looking for a singer and asked if I wanted to give it a go, which was weird really as they’d never heard me sing! We used to practice once a week even though we didn’t have any gigs, and we used to play a lot of Green Day and think we were rock and roll!
At the end of every term we used to perform a song for our year group. One of the first songs we performed was “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers—which my friends came to associate with me for the rest of my school days. I really enjoyed performing and yet I never had the courage to do a whole school assembly because I was intimidated. So it’s so weird to think that I’ve ended up performing on stage in front of thousands. After about a year and a half the band decided that they wanted to get a new singer, so Stan and I kept the name of The Rogue and started working with another guy called Ben, who is very talented musically. We used to do acoustic gigs, but it was more for fun than anything, and we never expected to make it big—I just loved the feeling of performing to an audience.
I had already done little bits of acting aside from school shows, as I’d had some TV work as an extra. Because my sisters Daisy and Phoebe are identical twins they used to do extra work as babies, and they got a role on a show called Fat Friends. My mom asked the director if I could be an extra, so I went along and that’s where I met James Corden as he was in the program. He’s a top bloke and now a good friend of mine. Ironically I was one of the first people ever to ask him for an autograph, and I’ve still got it at home somewhere. I’ll have to dig it out and embarrass him.
After doing the extra work I started going along to an acting school in Barnsley and I got in with an acting agent. After that I did an ITV1 drama called If I Had You, and I had a small part in Waterloo Road. Acting is something I would definitely think about pursuing later on, but for now it’s all about the band. I won’t stop until we’re absolutely massive.
Toys R Us was one of many jobs that I had when I was at school. We all had to do work experience at the end of Year 10 and, because my granddad knew the chairman of Barnsley Football Club, I went and worked as a coach there for two weeks and it was great. I actually wanted to be a soccer coach at one stage. Either that or an English or drama teacher, because I loved the idea of working with kids.
I also worked on the tills at Doncaster Rovers’ Keepmoat Football Stadium selling snacks at half time, and the only thing I really liked about it was the free food. I then got a job at the Vue cinema, and that was great because I got to see all the new films. I was on three months’ probation, but there were a few times when I called in sick and later they found out I’d been out at parties, so the three months turned into seven and a half months. I think they quite liked me and probably wanted to keep me on, but they wouldn’t commit to giving me a full-time job. In the end it was actually The X Factor that ended that job for me. When I first applied for the show I had an audition on a day when I was supposed to be working, so I got a friend of mine called Laurence to cover for me. He forgot and didn’t turn up—but it was my responsibility. It was the last straw and I got the boot.
I was also a waiter for a while. I wasn’t the best waiter, but I used to get good tips because I loved a chat, and maybe a little flirting here and there…
I remember lots of stories from the parties I went to during sixth form, some of which were pretty crazy. One party, I’d had a few drinks and I missed my lift home and needed a place to stay so the obvious solution was to walk to the airport with my friends Rob and Curtis and sleep there. Can’t say it’s the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had!
Just to make things more confusing school-wise, I failed my first year of A-levels at Hayfield—mainly because I’d been too busy having fun. I remember the day I heard I’d failed. I was absolutely distraught, because I knew that Hayfield wouldn’t let me back in to re-sit. All of my good friends had passed, and I knew that they would be going back the next year and then heading off to university and I’d be left behind.
I ended up going back to Hall Cross and starting A-levels all over again there. I had been studying Psychology, English Lit, PE and IT, but I later dropped English Lit because it was all a bit too much. It was a blow to me, but thankfully I was 17 and happy to make new friends. Even though I felt a bit of an idiot because I was a year older than everyone else, I soon felt like I fit in. Also I was the only one in my year who could drive, which was quite a nice position to be in as it meant I could ferry people around.
I passed my driving test first time. I didn’t pass the theory test first time, because I didn’t study for it, which wasn’t very sensible, but I got through the second time, scoring 43—right on the pass mark. It was great being able to drive everyone around in my 1.2 Clio. It had alloy wheels and central locking and it was my pride and joy. It was really my nan’s car, but it kind of ended up being mine because she never used it.
One of the highlights of secondary school for me was when I landed the lead role in Grease. It was the first musical I’d ever auditioned for, and that was on the same day that I had an interview for a Christmas job at Toys R Us. My mom picked me up from my interview to make sure I went to the audition, because she knew I was in two minds about it. Luckily it went well and I was so happy when I was told I’d got the role of Danny. I still get emotional when I watch the video back, because it was such a special time for me. I felt so proud of landing the lead and I put everything into it. I just want to take this moment to thank everyone involved in that production. It was a fantastic part of my life and I will never forget it.
I was out all the time in that first year and had such a good time. That summer was the best I’d ever had. I went to France with Stan, then to Jersey to see Stacey, a girl I met on holiday, and to Leeds Festival, which was an incredible experience. I remember there were loads of house parties and garden parties. I also had a party myself when my parents went away, and that was phenomenal.
My whole family went away for two weeks, and they wouldn’t let me stay at home, or even leave me the keys, because they thought I’d have a party. But I’d had a new key cut, and within an hour of them going away I was back in our house in Doncaster. I invited everyone on Facebook and Stan brought along a massive amp. We plugged iPods into it, and we had it on on full blast—with the patio doors open—so it was only a matter of time before the police came around and asked us to turn the music down.
I wanted my mom to find out about the party while she was still on holiday, to give her time to get over it, so I put the photos up on Facebook, where I knew she’d see them. Thankfully there was no damage and we cleared everything up, so it wasn’t too bad and I didn’t get into too much trouble.
When I turned 18 I started going out even more and I used to go to this indie bar called Priory. That got me into new types of music and I started listening to a lot more genres of music at home. The memories I have of that club are incredible; it used to be all I’d look forward to every week.
> I am very lucky to have been blessed with a lot of very good friends; however for the last five years Stan has been my very best friend. The amount of hilarious memories we have had together is ridiculous but to name a few, screaming “Tony” at the top of our voices just because that was my neighbor’s name, pretending we knew the words to all the “Indie” songs that come on in Priory and just singing gibberish, the time we said something mildly offensive to a woman we thought was French in France (it turned out however she was English) and of course the time Stan was so drunk he tried to take a wee in my sister’s room. We have had so many funny memories together, not everyone has the pleasure of having a friend this close to them and for that I am very grateful.
I always got on well with girls at school and I had a couple of little relationships in Years Seven and Eight. Then towards the end of Year Eight I used to hang out at my friend Dan’s house a lot and I got friendly with a friend of his called Arianna. I ended up seeing her for about eight months and she was my first proper girlfriend.
I won’t lie, I was a bit of a flirt at school and I always liked girls’ company. I really liked this girl called Beth, and we were friends for about six months, then we started seeing each other when I was about 15. We stayed together for two years and two months and we got on so well it was really nice. Later on it all started to get a bit too intense for that age, so we split up. After that I was single for a year and then I got together with Hannah, who I was with during the show.
One Direction: Dare to Dream: Life as One Direction Page 5
