Harry Styles may be a global megastar, but his mother believes he is “just like any other son.”
The former One Direction member, 29, was born in Redditch in 1994 to Anne Twist, 55, and Des Styles, 65.
Harry also has a 32-year-old sister, Gemma Styles, and despite their parents are no longer married, his family is still quite close, with Anne revealing details about the superstar’s personal life in a rare interview.
Reflecting on her Grammy-winning son’s global fame, she began: ‘He said, “Mums don’t always know,” but I always thought he had something.’
In an interview with Mail Online, Anne stated that she doesn’t make a big deal about her son’s famous status, while being proud of his accomplishments.
‘He’s just the same as he has always been,’ she said. ‘As a very little boy, he was very much like he is now, just a smaller version.’
Anne is also equally proud of both of her children, whether it’s Harry scooping Brit Awards and making chart history, or Gemma fronting a podcast and speaking about mental health with her nine million Instagram followers.
She added: ‘I’m very proud of both Harry and his older sister Gemma and the adults they’ve become.
‘They’re both really hard-working, they’ve got good morals and they’re really kind people.
‘I know it sounds like a dreadful cliché but as long as they’re happy, that’s the most important thing.’
Anne told her grown-up children that they are all “close” and that it is only “geography” that keeps them apart, with Harry flying to a new nation every other week for numerous sold-out events.
‘We all see each other when we can.’
When Harry returns home to Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, Anne says he will come in and instantly ‘open the fridge,’ just like any other kid.
The former bar landlady, who married Harry’s stepfather Robin Twist in 2013, until his death from illness in 2017, went on to add Harry “always had a big smile” on his face growing up, and was more outgoing than his sister.
And when she encouraged him to audition for The X Factor in 2010, she had no clue how famous he would become with bandmates Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, and Zayn Malik.
‘It was all such a new experience and I just went along with it,’ she added. ‘I always felt like I was just there until it stopped and then I would be there to pick up the pieces – that just didn’t happen.’
On the key to Harry’s success, particularly with his solo music, she reckons it’s because he’s ‘authentic to himself’ and ‘takes influences from what he feels, what he’s listened to, what he likes.’
‘He’s not thinking, “Right, I need to make this song for this particular demographic.” He does what feels right to him – and it seems to be universally appreciated.’
However, Anne recalls Harry’s grandfather falling asleep at one of his concerts before he died from Parkinson’s disease in 2021, at the age of 86.
‘How you manage to do that with that noise, I’ve no idea,’ she smiled, fondly remembering her dad, Brian Selley.
She said that he and Harry shared traits such as their sense of humour, and Anne is now dedicated to raise Parkinson’s awareness in his honour after witnessing the ‘distressing’ ways in which the disease impacted him.
But one thing is certain: she considers herself extremely fortunate to have formed the family unit she has, confessing to having won the lottery of motherhood.
‘I’ve not done badly at all.’