Cheryl has defiantly defended her mum Joan following reports that she was responsible for the breakup of her daughter's relationship with Liam Payne. The former Girls Aloud singer took to Twitter to respond to the claims during what she described as a "difficult time." She wrote: "I hate responding to stuff esp [sic] at such difficult times but I cannot sit here and listen to such nasty, false articles regarding my mam. I don’t know why they involve her in stories about me. I can assure you she has absolutely nothing to do with any of it. I am a grown woman who is capable of dealing with my own life." The mum-of-one continued to add: "She is a soft and kind woman who doesn’t deserve to be dragged into something that has nothing whatsoever to do with her."
Cheryl defended her mum Joan following rumours about her involvement in her split from Liam
The star's fans were quick to support her, with her tweet being shared over 250 times just ten minutes after she posted it. "You tell them Cheryl. We will love and support you until the end. Positive vibes babes," one fan encouraged, while another said: "This is so sad. Sending you my love and best wishes." A third added: "Some people just don’t have a heart. Stay strong, we love you Cheryl."
MORE: Liam Payne talks baby Bear's first birthday
On Sunday night, Cheryl announced that she and Liam were going their separate ways in a statement posted on Twitter. "We are sad to announce that we are going our separate ways. It's been a tough decision for us to make. We still have so much love for each other as a family. Bear is our world and we ask that you respect his privacy as we navigate our way through this together," she wrote. Liam also posted an identical message on his own account.
Cheryl and her mum Joan are very close
MORE: Kimberly Walsh opens up about her playdates with BFF Cheryl
Cheryl and Liam began dating in 2016, and share one-year-old son Bear, who was born in March 2017. Rumours had been circulating surrounding their relationship over recent times, but they had publicly denied that anything was wrong when asked in interviews. Cheryl had celebrated her 35th birthday over the weekend with her former Girls Aloud bandmates Nicola Roberts and Kimberly Walsh, and shared a photo of the trio on her Instagram account. The star turned off the comments on the post, but captioned it: "Happy birthday with my ride or die (including Jon pulling a funny face in the background)."