INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

Purpose Of Liam Payne And Cheryl’s PR Stunt Has Shown Itself

By Alan Ewart
Published on: 00:18 PST, Mar 5, 2016

One Direction star Liam Payne is currently rumored to be dating Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, a married woman 10 years his senior. Somewhat amusingly, the claim that Payne was dating Cheryl was revealed by U.K. tabloid the Sun last Saturday, February 27. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, by yesterday, the Sun had done a u-turn on the story, claiming that Liam’s new romance was merely a PR stunt. Unusually for the Sun, they actually revealed the source of their claim that Cheryl and Liam’s romance is a PR stunt, but apparently that source is none other that Cheryl’s husband.

Payne and the former X-Factor judge first met on the show when One Direction were formed back in 2010. In recent days, we have seen numerous stories claiming that Liam got together with Cheryl back in December, just weeks after it was widely claimed that Payne was “heartbroken and devastated” by his split from girlfriend Sophia Smith.

Of course, One Direction fans have come to be suspicious of any story linking Payne or any of the boys with a new romance. Over the life of the hit band, Payne and his bandmates have been linked with so many romances that they would barely be able to stand much less take on grueling world tours were they all true.

It must be said that many of Payne’s fans were taken somewhat aback this week when claims emerged that Liam may be dating Cheryl. Payne has largely managed to stay out of the headlines over the past couple of months as he made the most of some downtime. Payne re-emerged to attend the Brit Awards with bandmate Louis Tomlinson, and I guess in hindsight, that was the sign that Liam was ready to re-enter the fray.

While many of Payne’s fans recognized Liam’s being linked with Cheryl as having all the hallmarks of another tiresome One Direction PR stunt, they have been scratching their heads as to why. Today’s press reports perhaps give the first indications as to the purpose of involving Liam in a stunt.

It has been widely reported that Simon Cowell’s X Factor is on its knees. The last season saw its lowest ever ratings, and a much-heralded reinvention of the show bombed badly. Payne and his One Direction bandmates are by a million miles the most successful act ever to emerge from the show, and it seems that Cowell is determined to use the One Direction connection in a bid to save a show that the public has fallen out of love with.

Liam’s bandmate Louis Tomlinson appeared on the show supporting Cowell during the judges’ houses stage of the last season. Not even that could save the show, and now it seems that Cowell could possibly enlist Payne as well as Tomlinson in a final bid to save the show.

The Mirror reports that both Liam and Cheryl could appear as judges on the next X Factor season. If Cowell is seriously considering enlisting both Payne and Cheryl as X Factor judges, it would make sense to begin the hype by suggesting a sexual relationship between them. Imagine the hype that would be generated by a high-profile fallout between Liam and Cheryl before the show started. The suggestions of bad blood and a lingering sexual tension between Payne and Fernandez-Versini would be a sure-fire winning formula, at least in the early stages.

Louis Walsh, another man hotly-tipped to return to X Factor, has also been drawn into the hype surrounding Liam by indicating that he thinks Cheryl and Payne would be “good for each other.” According to the Daily Mail, Walsh has even said that Cheryl and Liam should record a song together, no doubt to be premiered on The X Factor.

As all fans of One Direction are well aware, Liam’s bandmate Louis Tomlinson has been strongly linked with a role on X Factor, so at this stage, it is tough to know whether there is any truth to these stories or if Cowell is using his media influence to begin hyping the show early and to create a sense of anticipation.

Payne’s fans will have noted that Cheryl has recently signed to Modest Management, which also manages One Direction and is widely blamed by fans for the numerous PR stunts that Liam and his pals have been involved in through the years. Many fans believe that Liam and his bandmates have been sexualized, objectified, and exploited by their management.

Fans are hoping that Liam and the rest of One Direction will follow Harry Styles lead by breaking links with their current management team. In recent months, it has been reported that Niall Horan is getting involved in a sports management company with Modest, so if both Liam and Louis are set to work on The X Factor, we may be seeing clues that the rest of the boys are content to remain with Modest and Simon Cowell.

[Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP]

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