On July 1, Liam Payne and Cheryl announced that they were calling it quits [1] after more than two years together. The couple, who are parents to 1-year-old son Bear [2], announced their separation on Twitter, explaining that "It's been a tough decision for us to make. We still have so much love for each other as a family. Bear is our world and we ask that you respect his privacy as we navigate our way through this together."

Cheryl and I are sad to announce that we are going our separate ways. It's been a tough decision for us to make. We still have so much love for each other as a family. Bear is our world and we ask that you respect his privacy as we navigate our way through this together.

— Liam (@LiamPayne) July 1, 2018 [3]

Now, Cheryl's had to come to the defence of her mother, Joan Callaghan, who is being blamed for the split. "I hate responding to stuff esp at such difficult times but I cannot sit here and listen to such nasty, false articles regarding my mam," the 35-year-old singer wrote on Twitter. "I don't know why they involve her in stories about me. I can assure you she has absolutely nothing to do with any of it. I am a grown woman who is capable of dealing with my own life. She is a soft and kind woman who doesn't deserve to be dragged into something that has nothing whatsoever to do with her."

pic.twitter.com/jXLm9eogXP [4]

— Cheryl (@CherylOfficial) July 2, 2018 [5]

It sadly isn't the first time that Cheryl's mum is getting the blame for one of her breakups. She also reportedly "got in the way" of Cheryl's relationship with football player Ashley Cole, whom she divorced in 2010, Derek Hough, whom she briefly dated in 2010, and French restauranteur Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, whom she married in 2014 and divorced in 2016.