Cheryl’s sweet bond with Liam Payne’s family – from a ‘magical’ Disney holiday together to Christmas gatherings as she tries to keep the One Direction star’s memory alive

Cheryl Tweedy suffered one of the greatest tragedies of her life following his death 18 months ago. father of his child, Liam Payne.

In the heartbreaking months that followed, the 42-year-old singer remained extremely secretive to protect and support their nine-year-old son Bear.

The One Direction star died in 2024, at the age of 31, after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In a statement at the time, Cheryl said she felt “indescribable pain” when she told Bear that her father had passed away.

The couple tried to cope with their grief by spending quality time with Liam’s immediate family and keeping his memory alive.

Cheryl and Liam split in 2018 when Bear was just a baby, but the former Girls Aloud star she kept in touch with her parents, Geoff and Karen, as well as her two sisters, Ruth and Nicola.

Bear also gets along well with Ruth and Nicola’s children.

Cheryl, Bear and Paynes even made a joint visit to Walt Disney World in Florida last month. Liam’s ‘favorite place in the world’.

Cheryl and Bear tried to cope with their grief by spending quality time with Liam’s family, including his sister Ruth, upstairs.

In a social media post, Cheryl said: ‘Somewhere in the corners of the world Magic still exists. ‘I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to experience the joys of @waltdisneyworld, but the last few weeks I’ve completely escaped into my inner child.’

In the heartwarming family photos, the singer is seen holding Bear’s hand as they walk through the park’s ToyStory Land.

He added: ‘What a wonderful place.’

Commenting on Cheryl’s post, Liam’s sister Ruth talked about a trip they took together: ‘I [handshake emoji] transit flight’.

Ruth later shared that the trip was in memory of her late brother.

She wrote: ‘Bittersweet, healing and so sad at times, wandering around my brother’s favorite place without him and riding in his favorite cars.

‘[Her son’s] It’s my first time at Disneyworld and my little thrill seeker absolutely loved it, loving Disney is in his genes, it’s so magical✨❤️always cheers to you Liam, you would love this trip.’

Fans gushed over Cheryl’s sweet bond with Liam’s family in the comments, writing: ‘So happy you got to experience this with Bear and the rest of the Payne Family.’

Another said: ‘I’m so glad you guys are having so much fun and taking it easy. Sending lots of love to the whole family, especially to little Bear (not so little anymore).’

Cheryl, who was photographed with Bear in Florida, said in a social media post: ‘Somewhere in the corners of the world there is still Magic. I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to experience the joys of @waltdisneyworld, but the last few weeks I’ve completely escaped into my inner child.’

Liam’s sister Ruth posted polaroid photos of the late star in his Pirates of the Caribbean costume during a previous trip to Disney World

Ruth has long been fond of Cheryl and has previously posted messages on Instagram in support of her work.

She also hit back at trolls who criticized the singer’s choice of outfit for her wedding in 2016; Some people on social media claimed it was ‘not fancy enough’.

When he wrote on Ruth: ‘I also had no say in what any guest would wear to my wedding, I don’t know who had a say but considering my brother’s girlfriend is one of the most beautiful women in the world, she could wear anything and still look as gorgeous as she did at my wedding.

‘There’s enough hate in the world without people writing bad things about people they don’t know.’

During his first Christmas without his father, Cheryl made sure Bear was reminded of the happy memories he had with Liam and was visited by members of the Payne family.

Sources at the time told the Daily Mail that Cheryl would ‘go to great lengths’ to ensure Liam is never forgotten.

A source close to the family shared last year: ‘It’s been a really sad time for Bear and Cheryl. ‘Cheryl said it herself, but her son is trying to get over the loss of his father and that means there will be many milestones ahead, the first of which is Christmas.

‘This was when Liam would move on to Cheryl and they would give Bear the most special day even if they weren’t together.

‘No matter where Liam was in the world, he would always be home to spend Christmas Day with Bear. [Bear] ‘He’ll always have these memories but things will be different now.’

Despite the pain of losing his father, Cheryl does her best to give Bear an unforgettable and happy childhood.

Liam’s sister Ruth shared that the family trip to Disney World was in memory of her late brother

Commenting on Cheryl’s post, Liam’s sister Ruth talked about a trip they took together: ‘I [handshake emoji] ‘transition flight’

It was a heartwarming moment for fans to see Cheryl and Bear join her aunt Ruth on the family trip.

“It’s bittersweet, healing and sometimes so sad to wander around my brother’s favorite place without him and ride in his favorite cars,” Ruth wrote

Last Christmas he took her to meet her favorite animals; it was something he and the late One Direction singer shared a mutual love for.

Bear was invited on a three-night trip to Port Lympne, a safari park in Kent, where he looked ‘thrilled’ when he came face to face with park residents.

couple He stayed in a private £3,000-a-night glass-sided ‘tiger lodge’; here guests can view wildlife at close range.

Cheryl and Liam started dating in 2016 and their son was born the following year. They announced their separation in 2018.

The One Direction star shared on social media at the time: ‘We still have so much love for each other as a family.

‘The bear is our world, and we ask that you respect his privacy as we walk this path together.’

Cheryl’s close bond with Liam’s relatives stands in stark contrast to her estrangement from her own family.

Even though the singer has a net worth of £30 million, the lives of her four siblings couldn’t be more different.

His estranged brother Andrew Tweedy, 45, was seen ‘begging for money and living in a tent outside a supermarket’ in April.

Reports say he was spending his days hoping customers at Morrisons in Jarrow, South Tyneside, would buy him food.

Cheryl is said to have made numerous attempts to help her sister kick her drink and drug addiction, including offering her a £20,000 rehab stay.

Liam with parents Geoff and Karen and two sisters Ruth and Nicola

The pop star previously revealed Andrew’s three-decade-long decline began when he discovered the man who raised him was not his biological father, leading to consequences for the whole family.

Cheryl was raised on a council estate in Newcastle by her mother Joan Callaghan and father Garry Tweedy, along with Andrew and his siblings Garry, Gillian and Joe.

But their lives changed forever when, at the age of 14, Andrew came home angry after being told the truth about his family by someone on the street.

Cheryl recalled the incident in her 2012 autobiography My Story, saying she “remembered it like it was yesterday”.

He wrote: ‘My brother Andrew had stormed out the front door in a terrible rage. I had never seen him in such a state before and he started ranting and ranting at my mom and dad.

‘They looked really worried and my heart started beating super fast. “I’ll explain,” said my mother. His eyes looked sad and he had deep frown lines on his forehead.

‘My father had gone completely silent, which sent me into a panic. The atmosphere seemed chaotic. “Is my father my real father?” Andrew shouted in my mother’s face.

‘I swear the clock stopped for a second. He said that someone on the street told him that my father was not his real father.

‘Andrew was so distraught he looked mad. But as angry as he looked, it sounded very real.’

Cheryl, who was 11 at the time, said her mother gathered the children around the kitchen table and said: ‘I was 21 when me and your dad met.

My mother nodded to make it clear that she was talking about my father. ‘I already had Joe and you two’, now he looked at Gillian and Andrew but not at me.’

The discovery that Cheryl’s older siblings had different fathers tore the family apart.

Andrew and Gillian seemed to welcome the news the most; While she ran away from home and turned to drugs, her father Garry was unfaithful.

‘My mother and father separated not long after,’ he continued. ‘My father was having an affair and my mother tried to take him back but they couldn’t make it work anymore.

‘It must be hard to cope with the stress of raising five children alone, with the police constantly knocking on the door.

‘When Andrew was 15 he stabbed someone in a fight. This man punched Gillian in a bar. Everyone was torn. People were talking about prison and I was lying awake again, worrying.’

Andrew was sentenced to six years in prison; Cheryl hoped this conviction would teach her a lesson and change her life.

But he still struggled with addiction and had more than 50 criminal convictions.