Hard to believe the boys from global phenomenon that is One Direction did not know each other three years ago.

The popstars Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson auditioned separately for the UK edition of the ‘X Factor’ in 2010 and were grouped together as a boy band.

Fast forward two years later and the international hit makers are playing sell-out shows worldwide. Here are some reasons why they will be happy this Thanksgiving.

1.    One Direction beat Rod Stewart and Rolling Stones this week with a double No.1 scoring with their new album, ‘Take Me Home’, and single ‘Little Things’.

2.    Despite not winning the UK “X Factor’ in 2010, they have made more than £100 million in two years.

3.    The band are one of the UK’s most successful musical exports since the Beatles.

4.    They were the first UK group to debut at No. 1 in the USA with a debut album.

5.     ‘Up All Night’ was the highest selling number two album of 2011 with 138,163 copies sold in the first week alone.

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6.    ‘Up All Night went to: No.1 in a record 15 countries.

7.    The band were named by veteran journalist Barbara Walters in her coveted list “10 Most Fascinating People of 2012.”

8.    So far this year they received various accolades including an MTV Video & Music Award, a Teen Choice Award, a People’s Choice Award, and a Brit Award.

9.    After his election victory, the band were reportedly asked by President Obama to perform at the White House for daughters, Malia, 14, and Sasha, 1. Earlier this year, Michelle reportedly asked the band to visit the White House for their annual Easter egg hunt in April, after meeting them at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

10.    The band (@onedirection) have almost eight million followers on Twitter.

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