Jack Whitehall shares insight into emotional BRIT Awards tribute to ‘lovely’ Liam Payne

The tribute to Liam Payne will be honored during Saturday night’s show, according to BRIT Awards host Jack Whitehall, has some light.

Liam Payne, the singer and the drummer for One Direction, died on October 16, 2024, after falling from a third-floor balcony in Buenos Aires. Polytrauma, which indicates multiple severe injuries to Liam’s body, was confirmed as the cause of his death. Liam will be honored at the BRITS on Saturday, March 1, five months after his tragic passing.

While One Direction fans had hoped that Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik from his former bandmates would perform the tribute live, it has been confirmed that the boys won’t be saying anything in memory of Liam.

The group, who has won seven BRIT Awards in their careers, may have approached the event organizers about playing live at the ceremony on March 1. However, Liam’s four ex-bandmates have chosen not to play. BRITs host Jack, 36, has assured Liam that he will still be honored in style despite the fact that the former One Direction stars won’t be a part of the tribute.

Jack clarified what BRIT viewers can expect by saying, “It’s really lovely that we have this moment in the show to pay tribute to and remember him.” I have a lot of Liam memories that are truly wonderful. He had a good time always. Not everyone is up for that, but he always made time for me to do sketches. The BRITS won’t be Liam’s first award-winning tribute. Fans were enraged earlier this month when the Grammys released a heartbreaking video montage of the star.

Any of Harry, Niall, Louis, and Zayn’s attendance to the event is unlikely, given that it was reported last month that they were concerned a reunion might overshadow the tribute to Liam. There are no current plans for any upcoming One Direction projects despite the former bandmates’ reunion after Liam’s passing in 2015, which would have brought them back in contact for the first time since Zayn’s departure.

According to a source, “the group decided that a performance would be too overwhelming because it had been a very emotional time for them.” They have privately deplored and don’t feel the need to pay a public respect for it. Fans may be disappointed, but the timing is simply incorrect.

The comedian has been working on the script for months, and this will be his fifth appearance in the biggest night of UK music. He has promised to sneak in some surprises while their teams have only been given a sneak peek of what he has in store. We go through this process where we spend four months writing this script, crafting it all, and [in the rehearsal] we have this moment where we’re finalizing it, choosing the appropriate jokes, and putting everything together,” Jack told the Mirror.

Then, for the dress rehearsals, I create a fake script so that no one can criticize what I say about their acts. Then, I make sure there are a few surprises for the acts, the record labels, and ITV on the night. Everyone will keep on their toes, I like to say that. At tonight’s awards ceremony at London’s O2 Arena, Ezra Collective, Jorja Smith, JADE, Lola Young, Myles Smith, Sabrina Carpenter, Sam Fender, Teddy Swims, and The Last Dinner Party will all be performing.

Five awards are available for Charli XCX. The BRITs Rising Star Award winner, Myles Smith, Sabrina Carpenter, and Charli Xcx, this year’s Songwriter of the Year, have already been announced.

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Source: Mirror