Max George has paid tribute to Liam Payne and praised the late star for supporting him "a lot personally" following the death of his bandmate Tom Parker

He wrote on Instagram: "Absolutely devastating news. I met Liam way back when 1D were on X Factor. Over the last few years I had the pleasure of getting to know him personally and spent some treasured time with him.

Liam was absolutely wonderful in terms of support when Tom fell ill, performing at the Royal Albert Hall with us for Stand Up To Cancer.

He supported me a lot personally after Tom passed. I will never forget that.

My thoughts are with his family, friends and fans all around the world at this tragic time.

Rest in Peace Liam. Much love brother (sic)"

Max's The Wanted bandmate Tom died in March 2022 aged 33 after losing his battle with brain cancer.

Following Liam's tragic passing, Olly Murs - who found fame on 'The X Factor', like the One Direction star - has also paid tribute to his pal, admitting they "shared the same passions".

Olly wrote on Instagram: "This news is devastating, am lost for words. we always had a good laugh when we saw each other, sometimes the catch ups were only short and sweet but when we did it was mostly about how annoyingly good his hair always looked, or our love for Becks, the old XF days and the tour we shared together. Liam shared the same passions as me, the same dreams so to see his life now end so young hits hard, I'm truly gutted and devastated for his Family and of course his son Bear losing a dad x am thinking of them! RIP Liam (sic)"

Singer-songwriter Ty Dollar $ign also took to social media to pay tribute to Liam, and the star revealed he only spoke to the singer two days ago.

Ty admitted he will "miss" the 'Strip That Down' hitmaker, and he added on his Instagram story: "Just talked to you two days ago my guy."