Geoff Payne (left) reportedly struggled with his son’s fame (
Image: Express & Star / SWNS)

Liam Payne’s dad Geoff Payne, who worked with authorities in Argentina to bring his late son home, spoke about the key moments he missed with his teenage son as Liam quickly grew into a superstar

Liam Payne’s father bravely flew to Argentina to do the unimaginable as a parent – to bring their child home to be laid to rest.

The former One Direction star tragically plunged to his death from a third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on October 16. He had been holidaying with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, before his trip took a drastic turn.

Liam was on a worrying spiral before tragedy struck, and his father Geoff Payne had reportedly raised concern for his boy in the weeks running up to his untimely passing. It was Geoff who immediately travelled to the Casa Sur Palermo hotel to organise the repatriation of his son’s body as police continued their investigations.

Liam’s dad Geoff was seen comforting Simon Cowell at the funeral ( 
Image:

WireImage)
He remained strong for this family, and an eye-witness said ‘determined’ Geoff refused to leave the hotel, clinging to the memory of his son. Once home at the tragic funeral last Wednesday at St. Mary’s Church in Amersham, Liam’s devoted dad was there again – fulfilling the unbreakable promise he made to his family to remain by their boy’s side as Liam’s coffin was carried into the church.

The dad-of-three had struggled to come to terms with losing his pop star son for the first time, to his fame that took him touring across the world in front of millions of adoring fans. Following the funeral, a friend of the family told Mail Online : “Geoff is a lovely, lovely man. He struggled with Liam becoming famous.

“It was Simon who gave Liam so much, but also the one who took him away as such a young man, so it must have been difficult for Geoff.” Liam shot to fame on The X Factor, aged 16, and signed to Simon’s music label SyCo – then ultimately, never came home again.

When he jetted off around the world on tours, his parents shared how difficult it was to see him go. Geoff said that he mourned missing “rites of passage” with his teenage son, like buying him his first beer.

During 1D’s 2013 film, This Is Us, he opened up: “I don’t think we get to see him enough. There’s a lot said about the mum’s spirit and feeling. But dads do feel it as well, especially at 17, you’d like to have that son around you. All I had to offer him was to take him drinking and playing snooker.

Liam Payne with father Geoff and mother Karen after the X Factor final outside Fountain Studios in 2010
“I didn’t really have an awful lot to offer him, but that’s part of your establishment as a young man, and that time went. I’ve missed it. I’ve missed it. He’s the only fella in the family, he’s gone.”

It has been claimed in documents that Liam’s father had been concerned for him for a while and said it was critical that Liam always stayed busy and was never left alone. He reportedly became alarmed in September after his son ‘fired a bodyguard who was trying to stop him from doing drugs’, according to TMZ. The Mirror have reached out to his estate for comment.

It comes as new details of the moments leading up to Liam’s death emerged. According to reports, the singer was trying to escape his hotel room before his death and was wearing a bag. It has been claimed by witnesses and a filed police report that the hotel allegedly knew Liam was threatening to use the balcony as a means to flee but left him by himself.

According to the same publication, sources have said Liam had a repeated aversion to being confined in hotel rooms, a reaction that traces back to his years in One Direction. Speaking on The Diary of a CEO podcast in 2021, Liam said about his aversion to hotel rooms: “My dad said it from day one – lonely hotel rooms, man – getting locked in that room is not fun when you’ve been exposed.”

Following Liam’s death, his family released an emotional statement: “We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”