1D’s Louis thanks fans for support over death of mother

ONE Direction star Louis Tomlinson, pictured above, has thanked fans for their support following the death of his mother ahead of his performance in her memory on The X Factor.

Johannah Deakin, 43, died on Wednesday after a battle with leukaemia and tonight Tomlinson will pay tribute to her during the show, as the final three contestants fight it out to be named 2016 champion.

Tomlinson, 24, wrote on Twitter: “All the support has been incredible! Let’s do this together tonight .”

He will return to the show where One Direction found fame in 2010, when they finished third behind Rebecca Ferguson and eventual winner Matt Cardle.

Other members of the boyband have rushed to offer words of support to Tomlinson on social media, while the mother of his son Freddie, Briana Jungwirth, has also paid tribute.

The remaining three acts were due to take to the stage twice last night.

Boy band 5 After Midnight, who are bidding to become the first boy band to win the show, were due to perform Beyonce’s Crazy In Love – while Nicole Scherzinger’s act Matt Terry was to sing Take Me Home by Jess Glynne.

Finnish singer Saara Aalto was scheduled to perform Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears For Fears as she bid to become the first foreign act to win the UK show.

The acts performed a duet with an accomplished musician.

Also performing were The Weeknd, Madness, Kylie Minogue and Little Mix – the only group to have ever won The X Factor.

Aalto has seen her odds cut in recent weeks, overtaking Terry as favourite to win the competition. She is now 8/15 to win, according to bookmaker William Hill.

Spokesman Rupert Adams said: “The money is pouring in for Saara (8/15) and the 5/2 for Matt is also proving tempting for many.

“We are set to see the biggest weekend of X Factor betting for years – this is going down to the wire.”