1.    The group’s formation
After Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson auditioned separately for Simon Cowell’s show ‘The X Factor’, guest judge Nicole Scherzinger suggested the boys be put together to form One Direction.

Watch the lads get the news they are to join forces in the boy band.

2.    One Direction’s first album debuts at top spot on the US Billboard charts.
In March, One Direction and their debut album ‘Up All Night’ officially debuted at number one in the United States, granting them the bragging rights of the first ever UK group to do so.

3.    One Direction perform on NBC’s Today Show in NYC
Hundreds of adoring fans, mostly females, showed up at Rockefeller Centre in New York in March to watch the boys performance on the Today Show. The foursome not only spoke to the hosts of the popular show, but also delivered a lively performance to the huge crowd.


4.    One Direction join forces with Justin Bieber
The boy band met the Biebs while touring in the U.S. and according to Niall Horan’s tweets, the musicians collaborated in early April.

To the delight of teenage fans across the globe, the Mullingar teenager tweeted: “in the studio with our boy @justinbieber last night, its gona sound great!”
Bieber himself also took to the social networking site to congratulate the boy band on their success. “congrats to my dudes @onedirection for the #1 album on itunes and @thewantedmusic for the #2 on singles. We share the same queen. #Canadian”.

5.    Chart toppers sued in same name debacle
A Californian band of the same name is suing the Irish / UK boyband One Direction over trademark infringement for using the band’s name. Simon Cowell’s boys remain adamant they will not change their name.

6.    The British-Irish boyband perform on Saturday Night Live
A fantastic accolade and indicator of their popularity here in the U.S. the boys performed on Saturday Night Live in April.

7.    Their tickets sell out in less than one hour for MSG show
Breaking a new record, One Direction sold out their Madison Square Garden performance for this December in less than an hour.

In response, Liam Payne tweeted: “Wow msg I can not wait its going to be the most amazing night ever thank you so much for helping uss sell out madison square gardens!!!! :)x”.

8.    One Direction invited to the White House by Michelle Obama
The US First Lady asked the British boy band to the presidential home after meeting them backstage at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in Los Angeles in April. A source told The Sun newspaper: "She invited them to the White House for their annual Easter egg hunt on Easter Monday. It was such an honour."

Unfortunately the band were unable to accept her invitation -and possibly meet US president Barack Obama - as they jetted off to Australia on tour.

9.    Niall Horan’s toast sells for over $100,000 on Ebay.

A piece of Niall Horan’s toast that he took a bite out of while on Seven Network’s Sunrise TV show in Australia, sold for almost $100,000 on Ebay.

10.    One Direction bring a Dad to tears

One Direction brought a Brisbane father to tears last week, when his daughter achieved her dream of meeting the teenage pinups. Anthony Lee and his daughter Catie Rose managed to catch a moment with the band as they left a photo shoot in Brisbane.