THERE was only One Direction for an expectant mum attending one of the boyband's concerts last week - and that was hospital.
Julie-Anne Kirk (29), from the Crumlin Road in north Belfast, was enjoying herself at the show in the SSE Arena when she went into labour and her waters broke.
While global media attention centred on 1D's no-show on Wednesday night, little did the band know there would be an unscheduled appearance in their audience 24 hours later.
Ms Kirk was one week overdue when she attended the gig with her cousin and 13-year-old niece, not expecting to be rushed to a labour ward.
But with the teenage heart-throbs about to wrap up their show, Ms Kirk realised her little baby was ready to make her way into the world.
"Before the concert, everyone had been saying to me you're mad going or anything could happen," she said.
"But I felt fine and I didn't think I was ready. We had bought the tickets so long ago, maybe a year ago, so I wanted to go and never thought about anything happening.
"I was sitting in the concert and it was literally about half-way through when I started to get a sore tummy.
"But I was drinking Coke and eating curry chips so I just put it down to that.
"I think I was probably afraid to think that it was anything more."
Ms Kirk said as the pains got worse, she realised her baby was about to make an appearance.
"I texted my partner after 10pm to tell him that I had a sore stomach and that it could be the start of labour," she said.
"I went back and forth to the toilet and then literally my waters broke in the toilets.
"I was afraid the concert was about to finish - I didn't want to be trying to get out of there when the concert was just over - so I texted my cousin and my niece to come out to me.
"They came looking for me in the toilets and I knew things were getting close, so we just got out of the place and I didn't look back.
"I heard afterwards that the band had only two songs left so it was close to getting out of there."
Ms Kirk said her aunt met them outside the SSE Arena and took her the short journey to hospital where her partner and mum were waiting.
"We literally arrived at 11.10pm and I got into the birthing pool and she was born at 12.50am," she said.
"It doesn't bear thinking about if I hadn't of been able to get out of the concert.
"I never thought this would happen."
Baby Laiya was born at the Mater Hospital, weighing in at a healthy 7lb 9oz.
Asked if she would have considered naming the baby after one of the boyband members if it had been a boy, Ms Kirk said she "couldn't see" her newborn with a 1D name.
After hearing of her baby news, One Direction sent a signed picture of the band to the new mum.
Now home from hospital, baby Laiya is "doing great" and being well looked after by her doting big brother Dylan (8).
And with the band's hit Story of My Life ringing in Julie-Anne's ears, her daughter will definitely have a tale to tell in years to come.
"It will be definitely something I have to tell her when she's older, she could have been born at the One Direction concert."
