A detailed timeline of their tumultuous relationship

Liam Payne’s tragic death at the age of 31 has left fans devastated as details about his personal life continue to emerge.

Payne, who had been in Argentina with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, had recently made headlines following revelations from his ex-fiancée, Maya Henry.

The pair had a tumultuous on-and-off relationship that lasted several years, with Henry revealing just days before Payne’s death that she had sent him a smear letter, accusing him of ongoing harassment.

Their relationship, which began in 2018, has often been in the spotlight due to their public appearances and high-profile breakup.

Despite brief reconciliations, Payne and Henry called it quits for good in May 2022 amid rumors of infidelity. Henry’s debut novel, Looking Forward, released in May 2024, is said to be loosely based on her relationship with Payne.

She later posted a series of videos on social media claiming Payne had harassed her and her family even after their breakup. Days after these allegations came to light, Payne tragically died after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina.

Relationship timeline:

August 2018: First linked
Liam Payne and Maya Henry were first spotted together in August 2018, shortly after Payne’s split from Cheryl Cole. Although their relationship remained low-key, they went public with their romance in September 2019, with Payne admitting on KISS FM UK that Henry helped him feel more relaxed in the public eye. “The difference is with her, she is so relaxed that it helps me relax in a certain situation,” he said.

August 2020: Engagement
Two years into their relationship, Payne proposed to Henry in August 2020. Payne appeared on Good Morning America soon after, saying they were “just really happy” after the engagement and discussing milestones in his life, including his son Bear starting college.

June 2021: First break
In June 2021, the couple hit a rough patch and broke up. Payne confirmed the split during an interview on The Diary of a CEO podcast, admitting, “I’m just not very good at relationships. I just need to work on myself before I trust myself to anyone else.”

October 2021: Reconciliation
Their breakup was short-lived, as the couple reconciled later that year and appeared on the red carpet together at the BFI London Film Festival in October 2021.

May 2022: Final split
By May 2022, Payne and Henry had split for good, with Henry publicly commenting on a photo of Payne with another woman. “Please stop sending me these pictures of my fiance wrapped around another woman. This is not me and it’s hard enough knowing this happened without seeing it. Enough now,” she wrote. Payne’s rep confirmed that the couple had split “over a month ago.”

May 2024: Henry’s novel
Henry released her debut novel Looking Forward in May 2024, prompting speculation that the book was based on her relationship with Payne. In an interview with People, Henry acknowledged that the book was inspired by true events, explaining, “The book is obviously fiction, (but it’s) definitely inspired by true events.” She also spoke about her emotional connection with the main character, Mallory, and how the fictional romance reflected aspects of her real-life experience with Payne.

October 2024: Harassment allegations and ceasefire
In early October 2024, Henry posted a series of TikTok videos accusing Payne of harassing her and her family members, saying, “He’ll create new iCloud accounts for iMessage — it’s always a damn new iCloud account.” Days later, on October 14, the Daily Mail reported that Henry had sent a cease and desist letter to Payne after he allegedly continued to contact her. Payne tragically died two days later on October 16 after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina.