So, who the heck are One Direction?

Think you know all there is to know about One Direction? Just wait til you see what we've uncovered - baby photos included / Kate Midena

Screaming teenage girls surround the Intercontinental Hotel on Phillip St Sydney.� Source: Supplied

Yes, that's One Direction heart-throb Louis with his shirt off on Sydney Harbour. Picture: John Grainger Source: The Daily Telegraph

• They make girls cry, but who are One Direction?�
• We give you a cheat sheet, with all you need to know�
• Already a fan? Watch our 1D Secrets video below�

THEY have millions of screaming fans around the world, but if you're over the age of 18 chances are you have no idea who One Direction are.

After their arrival in Sydney this morning, mothers were warned to lock up their daughters.�

Those on a longer leash camped at the airport or outside One Direction Headquarters (the Intercontinental hotel) just to catch a glimpse of the heartthrobs.

Then, they were snapped frolicking on Sydney Harbour, to the joy of those following their every move.

But if you can't be bothered to search through the 852 million results on Google, we'll give you all you really need to know right here.

�Already a fan? We reveal six One Direction secrets in the video above.

The five-piece boy band is made up of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson. They all met during the seventh series of the UK X-Factor in 2010, when they took out third place.

They initially auditioned as solo artists, but were put into a group halfway through the series on the suggestion of judge Nicole Sherzinger, of Pussycat Dolls fame.

Once the show finished, the boys - all aged between 19 and 21 - signed to Simon Cowell's label Syco Records.

(I'm resisting the urge to put in a pun about them only going in One Direction from here, but I'll let it slide for now....)�

One Direction's first album Up All Night became the fastest-selling debut album on the UK chart in 2011, going twice-platinum on the Australian charts.

In 2012, Up All Night debuted at number one on the US Billboard charts, and after selling 176,000 copies in its first week, made One Direction the first UK group in history to debut at number one with their first album.

When you consider the many and varied UK groups who came before them - Spice Girls, Oasis, Take That, Westlife, Five, Blur - that's quite an achievement.

Their debut single What Makes You Beautiful won Best British Single at the 2012 Brit Awards, and if you add to this the fact that their Australian concerts sold out in three minutes, you can start to see why they're attracting comparisons to the success of The Beatles.

Oh, and in case you were wondering - yes, just like Justin Bieber and his Beliebers, One Direction fans do have their own identity.

They're known as Directioners.

You're welcome.

Source: http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/so-who-the-heck-are-one-direction/story-e6frfn09-1226322912461?from=public_rss

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