Liam Payne's son Bear's first 'Christmas phrase' revealed by star as Cheryl captures it on video
One Direction star Liam Payne was known as being a doting dad to his young son, Bear, whom he shared with his former partner, Girls Aloud singer Cheryl. In an unearthed interview, the singer, 31, spoke about how the pair made Christmas special for their son, with family warmth and rituals.
But, now another interview has revealed the first-ever Christmas phrase that Bear, now seven years old, spoke, and it's enough to melt – but also to break – fans' hearts. Bear will tragically be spending his first festive season without his dad this year, after Liam was tragically killed when he fell from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aries, Argentina, last month. Although Liam's body is now believed to have been brought home to the UK, his funeral still hasn't been held in his home town of Wolverhampton.
Back in 2020, Liam spoke to People, explaining how Christmas took on "a new meaning" once Bear was born in 2017, when he had previously felt it was a "hollow" experience. He said: "For me, it really reignited Christmas. I moved away from home at 17, so Christmas kind of took on a new meaning. It was great to be able to shower people with gifts and make everybody feel welcome, but Christmas always felt a little bit hollow for some reason. Now he's kind of filled that hole for me and I understand it all over again."
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He went on to detail how Bear enjoyed watching festive films and even shared Bear's favourite seasonal phrase, continuing: "He completely gets it now! He's been watching Home Alone and 'Merry Christmas, you filthy animal,' was one of his first phrases. Liam said he found this "absolutely hilarious".
The quote “Keep the change, you filthy animal” features in the Macaulay Culkin movie Home Alone, when his character Kevin McCallister fools burglars by playing a clip from the black-and-white film Angels with Dirty Faces, which was released in November 1938.
Forty one year old Cheryl, whom Liam dated from 2016 to 2018 before the pair split, sweetly used an audio recording of little Bear repeating the phrase when she posted a Christmas message to Instagram over the festive period in 2022. Speaking to camera, with a Christmas tree in the background, Cheryl said: "Hey everyone, it's Cheryl here. Just wishing you a very merry Christmas with lots of love from me, my family and my Greatest Dancer family."
The video finished with Bear's voice, saying: "Merry Christmas you filthy animals, and a happy new year" alongside an image of the quote.
Cheryl broke her silence over Liam's tragic death shortly after the shocking incident. The former X Factor judge added a touching snap of both Liam and a baby Bear lying together on a bed, and said: "As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, Id like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being. Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son. A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again."
