Niall Horan came back to reality with a bump after being left stranded on the side of the M6 following his Big Weekend performance. The chart-topper took to the stage at Herrington Country Park in Sunderland during BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend.
From Stage to Hard Shoulder
Despite entertaining fans and appearing on cloud nine when he performed 'Drive Safe' with pal Myles Smith, Niall's own journey back to London took a drastic turn as the 32-year-old was left requiring assistance from the AA. Taking to TikTok, the 'Dinner Party' hitmaker explained he had a "great day" until it was time to go home. Instead, as Niall headed southbound down the M6, he was left on the hard shoulder and watched the rest of the festival from his phone.
He told fans: "We made it to Sunderland for Radio 1's Big Weekend, I cannot wait to come out there and see you guys, this is my first gig in a year and a half." Niall's video, in view of his 6.4 million followers, also showed clips of his performances throughout the day, including his tracks 'Taste So Good', 'Nice To Meet Ya', and 'Slow Hands'. But he later shared a clip of him standing on the hard shoulder, adding: "Thank you Radio 1 for a great day... it was great until now. I'm stood on the side of the M6 waiting for AA to turn up. Good performance though."
Fan Reactions
His post, which has racked up over 37,000 likes, was soon flooded with comments. One fan penned: "Imagine being on the M6 and seeing Niall Horan standing on the side of the road…" Another wrote: "Oh no Niall, your car has broken down lol." A follower said: "The end [laughing emoji] hope you made it home Niall." Meanwhile, an Instagram user typed: "I need an update, did Niall get home safely?" "OMG not the AA truck," added another.
Liam Payne Tribute
Niall's performance in Sunderland came just days after he explained how he had honoured his friend and late bandmate, Liam Payne, on his upcoming album. Niall worked with John Ryan and Julian Bunetta on his project, who also worked with them during their One Direction days. "We wrote 'End of an Era' about four times, because originally the song to me meant, 'All right, we're moving on'," he said in a new interview. He told Rolling Stone that the track reflected on both future aspirations and cherished memories from the past, honouring what they'd shared while embracing what lay ahead. Niall continued: "We'd written that song a long time ago. And then it was like, 'No, we need to return to this,' after Liam passed."
John and Julian had been Liam's neighbours, with the four lads growing up together on the road. "For the three of us, it was actually quite a crazy experience to have to write a song like that, because you don't ever expect to," he explained. Niall described it as a "very weird experience", yet felt they "had to" rework it - not just for themselves, but for people listening who may have lost a loved one, as well as the fans and Liam's family. He said: "It felt like the right thing to do and something that we wanted to do - just terrible that we had to." Heart-wrenching lyrics on the emotional track include: "We had it, pure magic, remember what it was like, time passes, so fast, and I couldn't tell you goodbye."
Following the chart-topping group's split, Niall stayed in touch with Liam, along with Louis, whose live tour he recently attended. He's consistently expressed his admiration for his former bandmates and their achievements. Niall isn't shy about baring his soul on his upcoming album. Speaking to Hits Radio about the track, he said: "I just wanted to delve into the fear of losing someone and loss in this particular song. Yeah, it's good. I really like this song."
'Dinner Party' is set for release on June 5, via Capitol Records and UMG.
