Liam Payne splits from fiancee Maya Henry after intimate photos surface

Former One Direction star Liam Payne almost made it down the aisle but a series of photos of him wrapped around another woman appear to have been the catalyst for the singer's recent breakup.

After announcing his engagement to model Maya Henry in August 2020, the Sun has confirmed the singer, 28, parted ways with Henry, 21, last month.

"Liam and Maya broke up more than a month ago – sadly it's over for them," a source close to the pair told the British tabloid.

At the time, the reason for their decision wasn't made public. However, rumours of the breakup began to circulate after photos of Payne with his arms wrapped around a mystery woman were posted to an Instagram fan account.

Fans originally thought the mystery woman was Henry until the model commented, slamming the photos and confirming they weren't of her.

"I love all of the fans so much but please stop sending me these pictures of my fiance wrapped around another woman," Henry wrote.

"This is not me and it's hard enough knowing this has happened without seeing it. Enough now."

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This break up is the couple's second split since they started dating in August 2019, 12 months after Payne broke up with ex-girlfriend Cheryl Cole, with whom he shares a 5-year-old son.

Henry and Payne announced their engagement just a year later in August 2020, with Payne proposing during a Covid lockdown.

Unfortunately, by June 2021, the pair had split, with Payne revealing that he was single during an appearance on an episode of The Diary of a CEO podcast. The musician blamed himself for the split, admitting he had "not been very good at relationships" and that he needed to work on himself before making another long-term commitment.

"That's where I got to in my last relationship," he explains. "I just wasn't giving a very good version of me anymore, that I didn't appreciate and I didn't like being. I can honestly say I feel better out of it.

"I didn't feel good doing what I did but it had to happen. Just a corny way to say it was the best for us both. I need to sort myself out and I already feel good."

Liam and Maya got back together in September 2021, before definitively going their separate ways last month.