Since his departure from One Direction, Zayn Malik has had no qualms about speaking out about his time in the group.

One Direction

One Direction

The 23-year-old singer left the group in March 2015 but recently admitted there "wasn't a big build up" to his decision to quit.

He said: "When I decided to leave, it wasn't a big build up, it had always been underlying. I never felt like I belonged in the group, I was just doing it because at the time, I felt like it was the right place for me to be ...

"To be honest, I mentally and physically distanced myself from what I was doing creatively because I didn't want any part of it really. It didn't feel like I was really being me."

However, Zayn does look back on his time with the boy band with fondness as he previously revealed he has a wall dedicated to One Direction memorabilia in his house.

Writing in his book, he added: "I can honestly say I'm proud of a lot of stuff from the One Direction days. I'm not sure people realise that, but I am. I've got the memorabilia - the platinum discs we received with every album - all over my house.

"I have a wall dedicated to displaying the memorabilia. One Direction was an incredible experience in its own right, and it's a part of me, an integral part of my history, and I'm never going to deny that aspect of my life. I got to meet amazing fans, and I can never thank all of them enough for the love and support they gave me during the good times, and the bad."