Louis Tomlinson is "feeling emotional" about One Direction's 10th anniversary

He tweeted: "Feeling pretty emotional today. 10 years!! Spent the morning watching old interviews and performances. Just wanted to send a massive thank you to ALL of my band mates. What we did together was incredible.

"Too many incredible memories to mention but not a day goes by that I don't think about how amazing it was. @NiallOfficial @Harry_Styles @LiamPayne @zaynmalik. So proud of you all individually.

"And to the fans. The people who gave us all these amazing opportunities. You are incredible, your unmatched level of loyalty is something that makes me really really proud.

"Miss it every day! (sic)."

Louis' tweets came after Liam took to Twitter to share a picture of the text message he sent his father Geoff, telling him about the band.

The message reads "I'm in a boyband" and Liam said: "What a journey… I had no idea what we were in for when I sent this text to my Dad ten years ago at this exact time the band was formed. Thanks to everyone that’s supported us over the years and thanks to the boys for sharing this with me #10YearsOfOneDirection."

Zayn quit the band in 2015 before the other four members agreed to go on an indefinite hiatus in 2016, following the release of their fifth album 'Made In The AM'.

Meanwhile, in a new profile in Rolling Stone, One Direction songwriters Savan Kotecha, Carl Falk, Julian Bunetta and John Ryan, credit Louis with the enduring success of the band after establishing their rockier sound with 'Midnight Memories', their third album.

Kotecha praised Louis for "shepherding them into adulthood, away from the very poppy stuff of the first two albums. He was leading the charge to make sure that they had a more mature sound. And at the time, being in it, it was a little difficult for me, Rami [Yacoub] and Carl to grasp, but hindsight, that was the right thing to do".