A classmate of the late One Direction star Liam Payne has told Premier he was an “encouraging” friend to have, and was “confident and inspiring” as a teenager.
John Carpenter is a Christian, and a teacher. He attended St Peter’s Collegiate secondary school in Wolverhampton alongside Liam.
“He was a really confident but humble individual,” John said. “He was someone that would never give up, and he would always encourage and inspire others around him.”
John recounted that although Liam did not have a faith, his character was selfless and kind.
“I'm not sure whether Liam was a believer or not. He did say that he went to church, I believe, when he was younger, and had some kind of connection there. But he wasn't that that that keen on God, so I was really probably one of the only sort of Christian influences - apart from the school staff - in his life.”
John recounted that Liam had wanted to share success with his friend: “When I turned up in year seven, he was my first friend. We were both interested in sports, and he just came alongside me and really encouraged me. Liam was the best runner in school.
“He said ‘John, I really want you to join the cross-country team’. He wanted [me] to become as good as he was - to inspire and build people up, which was such a great sort of value linking to Christianity, really - whether he knew Jesus or not… the fact that he had a determination for others to succeed too.”
The former boyband star died on Wednesday 16th October, after falling out of a window at a hotel in Buenos Aires. Police were called to his hotel room after reports of a disturbance. Payne is reported to have been battling with mental health and addiction in the years after One Direction’s split.
His father, and fans, have gathered outside the hotel to leave tributes and photographs.