One Direction say that fans' mother's hit on them more than young people do.

Harry Styles, 18, believes they think they might be able to date him because he enjoyed a relationship with 'Xtra Factor' host Caroline Flack, who is 14 years older than him.

He told the Daily Star newspaper: "The fans can sometimes get very graphic and there are a few mums that hit on us."

Zayn Malik, 19, boasted: "Mums are more confident than their daughters and so they will go the extra mile to grab you and suggest things."

Louis Tomlinson, 20, added: "Ask Harry - they just go for it. They will grab and pinch and it gets quite tricky."

And Liam Payne, 18, said: "The mums are fearless."

The group which also includes Niall Horan say they were fighting off older women on their recent American tour and expect to do the same at British gigs later this year.

They denied that boss Simon Cowell, 52, had imposed a sex ban.

Louis said: "It was ridiculous. Do they think someone stands over us?"