Liam Payne’s Girlfriend Kate Cassidy Says She’s ‘Still Working on Accepting’ the Singer’s Death

Kate Cassidy opened up about her boyfriend, the late Liam Payne, in her first TV interview since the One Direction member tragically fell to his death at the age of 31 in October 2024.

“It’s really hard,” Kate, 25, told Scottish TV presenter Lorraine Kelly in an interview shared on YouTube on Wednesday, March 5. “I’ve never lost anyone before close to me so this is my first time dealing with anything like this and going through this grief and healing journey. I am trying to do my best. I have my better days, I have my harder days. But I’m surrounded by such a great support system.”

The social media influencer also admitted that she often finds herself referring to Liam as if he was still here.

“I find myself talking about him so much in the present tense … I don’t even feel the need to correct myself because that’s part of my healing journey,” Kate explained. “I’m still working on accepting the fact that he’s not here anymore, so it’s hard for me to refer to him in the past tense.”

She continued, “When I do refer to him in the past tense, it almost stings that little bit more. I never would have thought that I would be talking about him in the past tense, so it’s definitely really hard to accept.”

However, Kate said that her and Liam’s dog, Nala, has been instrumental in dealing with his death and has helped her immensely since he died.

“I have always been an active person, and now that I’m going through this healing journey, sometimes it’s hard for me to get out of bed in the morning, and it’s something I don’t want to do. But I have this responsibility and obligation and I have no choice. I have to get out of bed and Nala gets a five minute walk or a 20-minute walk first thing in the morning,” Kate added.

“Either way, it just wakes me up and refreshes my mind instead of just laying in bed all day scrolling through social media or old photos. It gets me out of bed and really, really helps my mindset and my mental health.”

Liam and Kate were vacationing in Argentina when the “What Makes You Beautiful Singer” fell from a third-story balcony at the hotel they were staying at in Buenos Aires on October 16, 2024. The couple had been there for more than two weeks and had traveled there to see former One Direction member Niall Horan perform on October 2, 2024.

However, Kate had left the country to return to her home in Florida just two days before Liam died. In a video she shared after leaving Argentina, Kate said that she and Liam were initially only planning on staying in the country for “five days,” but as the trip got extended, Kate eventually decided she wanted to head back to the States.

“I hate staying in one place for too long. I was just like, ’I need to go home,’” Kate said in the video at the time.

Kate didn’t break her silence on Liam’s death until months later when she spoke with The Sun.

“The past few months have been truly heartbreaking. I keep hoping I’ll wake up and this was all just a bad dream. Most days I feel numb and broken. The weight of it all feels unbearable,” Kate added in a video shared via her Instagram Stories in February. “However, after receiving thousands of messages from Liam’s fans seeking clarity during this devastating time, I wanted to share an insight into the relationship with the love of my life.”

She concluded, “This is my first ever interview while I navigate the pain of losing Liam, so please bear with me as I share my experience, which I hope will be received with compassion and understanding. Thank you so much for your kindness and support. It means more than I can put into words.”