One Direction Baby News: Liam Payne And Cheryl ‘Squeezing The PR Lemon’
For months now rumors have suggested that Liam Payne and girlfriend Cheryl are having the second One Direction baby. Of course, neither Liam nor Cheryl have said anything about their baby news and, as a result, One Direction fans are confused about the whole story. The unfolding baby news is beginning to look a lot like the last One Direction baby story. Fans will need no reminding that the first One Direction baby, Freddie Tomlinson, caused the most incredible furor. One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson enforced a virtual news blackout, banning journalists from asking questions about Briana Jungwirth’s pregnancy.
Liam and Cheryl seem to be following the same path. The Daily Mirror reports that Liam and Cheryl attended a charity bash in London and the pictures that have emerged appear to show that Cheryl is heavily pregnant. Cheryl sported a huge baby bump under a figure hugging khaki colored dress. Her black coat was left unbuttoned, showing her bump to the assembled paparazzi.
Yesterday, British TV host Lorraine Kelly expressed her exasperation at Liam and Cheryl’s silence over their baby news saying that baby news will always “come out.”
“Has she still not confirmed whether or not she’s pregnant? Why don’t they? It’s not exactly something you can hide.”
Today Good Morning Britain hosts Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid went even further, accusing Payne and Cheryl of remaining silent to keep the media talking about them. According to the Express, Morgan stated that Liam and Cheryl are “hamming it up” for the sake of a good story.
“Obviously they’re going to keep it a secret. It wouldn’t be anywhere near the excitement. You make the announcement and then boom, that’s the story done. Look, they’re popstars who want to keep the mystery going.”
“They’re going to keep squeezing that PR lemon a little bit longer. I like Cheryl, I like Liam. This really is something that I can’t find any negative in.”
According to the Mirror, Morgan then challenged Liam and Cheryl to “get on with” announcing their happy news.
“Congratulations Cheryl, but if you’re watching this, you can’t kid a kidder. You’re pregnant, get on with announcing it. We are very happy for you!”
Sadly there is no getting away from the fact that this latest One Direction baby story bears all the hallmarks of the previous one. On this occasion, Payne and Cheryl have been dating for around a year so at least there is a proper relationship. In some ways, it was understandable that Payne’s bandmate, Louis Tomlinson, didn’t want to talk publicly about his baby news. Tomlinson’s “relationship” with Briana Jungwirth amounted to the briefest of flings and her pregnancy was the result. Liam and Cheryl’s situation is very different, by all accounts, the couple is very happy together.
https://youtu.be/HSk1pKxOXjg
Why The Silence Over One Direction Baby News?
When it was first announced that Payne and Cheryl were dating many One Direction fans were convinced it was a publicity stunt. Cheryl had just signed to Modest Management the team who guided One Direction’s career. It is safe to assume that Modest advised Tomlinson on how to handle his One Direction baby news. It may well be the case that Modest is advising both Payne and Cheryl to remain quiet about her pregnancy in order to keep the story running for as long as possible. Some doubtless feel that any publicity is good publicity.
Is that a baby bump? Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne appear to confirm pregnancy rumours https://t.co/OtaiA0FIPn
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 30, 2016
The problem is that Tomlinson and Jungwirth suffered months of rumors and conspiracy theories as a result of the approach they took to One Direction baby news. No fan would like to see Liam Payne go through the same agony.
The latest pictures and Piers Morgan’s comments are just the latest in the current One Direction baby saga. Last week Unreality TV reported that X-Factor choreographer Brian Friedman, who worked closely with Cheryl for several years on the show, appeared to confirm the speculation when he said that Liam and Cheryl were having a baby together.
“Everyone wants to be in love, everyone wants to be happy. And now they’re having a baby together, so they definitely found something great.”
“It’s funny to think back how long ago it was that they first met. There’s something ironic in that they both came up into the industry in the same way, so they have an immediate connection.”
Everyone knows that One Direction fans are fiercely loyal to Payne and his bandmates. Occasionally that loyalty goes a little too far, but it seems somewhat churlish for Payne and Cheryl to maintain their silence over the latest One Direction baby news. The latest pictures seem to show that the cat is most definitely out of the bag.
[Featured Image by Francois Mori/AP Images]
