Auditions for the new series of Britain's Got Talent have been postponed following the tragic death of former One Direction singer Liam Payne at the age of 31.

One Direction was formed in 2010 after singers Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson auditioned as solo X Factor contestants.

The group signed with Simon Cowell after coming in third place during the seventh series of the popular singing contest.

They went on to release hit songs like What Makes You Beautiful, Story of My Life and Perfect until they took an indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Britain's Got Talent auditions postponed after Liam Payne's tragic death

Discussing the change, a spokesman for Britain's Got Talent producer, Freemantle UK, said: “Due to the tragic passing of Liam Payne, we have decided to postpone the Britain’s Got Talent auditions.

“Our thoughts are with Liam’s friends, family and all who loved him.”

The producer has not said when the auditions will resume.

This comes after the ITV show’s latest round of auditions were held in Blackpool on Wednesday.

Liam Payne died just hours after posting to the popular social media and messaging platform Snapchat.

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Local police said the 31-year-old fell from the third floor into the courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in the Palermo neighbourhood of Argentina’s capital before medics confirmed his death.

On Snapchat, the X Factor star had uploaded videos earlier on and spoke to his followers about his plans while on holiday, saying it was a "lovely day in Argentina" and that he also planned to play polo.

However, it appears the videos were posted days after they were filmed, as they include Liam’s girlfriend of two years, Kate Cassidy, who uploaded videos of her return to Florida on social media earlier in the week.