One Direction have given their first interview since the recent departure of Zayn Malik, pledging their commitment to the boyband as a four-piece.
The quartet spoke to The Sun newspaper at the weekend, claiming that the last few weeks have been "probably the toughest since the band was formed five years ago," according to Liam Payne. "We're gutted that Zayn chose to leave, but now after a few performances as a four-piece, we're feeling confident and are determined to carry on stronger than ever," he said.
Meanwhile, with rumours swirling that Louis Tomlinson may be the next member to quit the world-beating boyband, he assured fans in a boringly media-trained manner that "All four of us are 100% committed to staying in One Direction and we want to thank the fans for being so incredible during this time.
"We have so much more we still want to achieve," he added. "Our gigs in South Africa were some of the biggest the country has ever seen, so it's exciting for us to keep breaking records for British music worldwide."
Malik has been quiet since announcing his departure, although it's believed that he has been in the studio since quitting 1D last month.
