AS a young boy Harry Styles never cried much. Merely the tears gushed from the Ane Direction eye-throb on the day his dad announced he was walking out on his ­family unit.

Harry, now 18, was only 7 when his dad sabbatum him down and told him he was leaving domicile. He has since overcome the childhood trauma to join the world's hottest boyband.

Merely dad Des says the sight of his son in tears haunts him still – and reveals the moment he broke the news to Harry was the worst day of his life.

Des, 54, opens up on his relationship with nautical chart-topping son Harry and gives a ­fascinating insight into the life of the onetime X Factor idol.

He tells how he's tried to requite him advice on sleeping with girls and reveals he thought the 15-twelvemonth age gap betwixt Harry and one-time girlfriend Caroline Flack was "farthermost".

Only, movingly, he tells of his agony when he could no longer run across Harry and his sister Gemma, at present 21, after he split from their mum Anne.

Des said: "He was only about seven when I sat them down and told them I was leaving. Everybody was in tears.

"We were sitting in the lounge. Gemma and Harry were sitting on the floor in front of us, Anne and I on the sofa, and both of them were crying.

"Generally, you wouldn't see him cry as much as maybe some kids do – he wasn't ­generally emotional or a weep baby – but he cried and then."

"The way we sat them downwardly and told them we weren't going to be together whatever more, it was probably the worst solar day of my life."

Des says he and Anne tried to reassure their distraught son by telling him he wouldn't be leaving ­immediately.

The family unit struggled on for another two years before Des somewhen walked out.

He said: "I didn't simply leave, information technology was a decision we should split. Things weren't good for a while and information technology was the best way forwards.

"At the fourth dimension, everybody was in tears merely children are very resilient."

When he finally walked out for skilful, he said information technology was heartbreaking,

"Of form, I missed him and Gemma, as y'all would unless y'all were some sort of monster," he said.

"It was tough. I used to feed him every night at half 10, change his nappy, put him to bed when he was a baby and then I was no longer living with them."

Sales and marketing director Des confessed he's never spoken to Harry about how the suspension-up afflicted him.

"I've always tried to arroyo it from the other way, to say, 'Is everything all right Harry, is your mum all right, are you ok?'

"I used to see Harry and his sister Gemma every couple of weeks, I've always supported them financially and when I can emotionally.

"I'm not an estranged dad. It was a tough time to leave them but these things happen."

Harry'south mum remarried and moved with her new married man into a pub, which Des says he didn't corroborate of – merely he'south full of support for her new man Robin.

And he says he couldn't be prouder of Harry, who put the marriage split backside him to forge his pop career.

Des said: "He'southward polite and well mannered, he'southward trained up properly, but it wasn't me, of course not, it would exist Anne.

"But in his younger years, it was me. I say testify me the lad at 7 and I'll prove you the human, and then I was at that place then.

"I'm just so proud of Harry. Three years ago, he was working in the bakery in the local ­hamlet and now he'southward something similar 86th on twitter in the world."

Harry hit the big time after he auditioned for The X Gene in 2010.

He failed to brand information technology through to the boys' category but guest judge Nicole Scherzinger suggested he join up with fellow hopefuls Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan to grade a boy band.

1 Direction came third and the post-obit year released their debut album Up All Dark – the fastest selling debut in UK chart history and the get-go British human action to take their debut album go directly to No1 in the The states.

Des says he'southward been overwhelmed past the ring's success but has been able to sample some of the hysteria in America.

He added: "I went to New York in April to watch them on the Morning Show on NBC, with 15,000 fans on Rockefeller Plaza all screaming their heads off, and I spent a few days with the lads in their van going round experiencing what they were experiencing and it was­ ­crawly.

"The fact that they all get on and then well together and are billowy off each other all the time, you tin can imagine, it must be like not bad it as a footballer."

Des reveals he's tried to warn Harry about the dangers of getting into trouble with girls who now throw themselves at him.

He said: "I never needed to sit him downwards and tell him near the birds and the bees. I tried to train him upwardly every bit we went forth.

"We had those conversations and it was almost as though he'd say, 'Yes, dad, I'chiliad on board with that', rather than going all sicky and saying, 'Oh dad don't talk about things similar that', you know the way some kids do.

"I said to Harry, simply make sure you don't get anyone pregnant considering if that were to ­happen, it would really screw things up large time.

"If he then makes a mistake, so be it. There'southward nothing I can exercise to stop him doing annihilation. He's away in a dissimilar country and completely different globe.

"From a 1 Management aspect, information technology wouldn't be dandy. It would drive a truck through that.

"I don't recollect it would carp him too much if he did get a girl pregnant. He would be a responsible parent and get on with information technology, which seems a scrap bizarre, doesn't information technology? Only I honestly retrieve that'south the manner he'd be."

Harry acquired controversy last October when, anile 17, he started dating Goggle box presenter Caroline Flack, who, at 32, was fifteen years older than him.

They split three months later on and Des admits that even though he secretly admired his son'south pulling power, he felt the historic period gap was too large.

Des said: "With Caroline Flack, you can imagine, dads and sons, it's like, 'Fair play, son.' But it was a bit ridiculous, 32 or whatever she was and 17. It's a chip extreme actually."

Only Des says he isn't surprised Harry is ­getting a lot of attention from the opposite sex activity, considering he's ever been a heart-throb.

He added: "We went on vacation once to Cyprus when he was nine and as we left there was a whole melee of teenage girls, 16, 17-year-olds gathered by the side of the omnibus maxim, 'bye Harry, we love you'. How did he exercise that?

"He's just got this fantastic personable demeanour to him. Clearly he'due south a bit special.

"It'due south not just his looks but he's very charming, it'southward like a gift really. I always knew he'd succeed at whatever he did because he'd ever charm people, from performing in the auto or on ­holiday he'd e'er be able to agree a crowd or hold a room even when he was a kid.

"His sister has always been academically bright and when he was about 14 he would say, 'I'll never live up to Gemma', but the tables are turned now through what'southward happened to Harry."

Despite Harry's success, Des doesn't think he'll plow into a ladykiller.

"He'due south non 1 to run three girls at once. He's a i girl person when he's with somebody. There was a brusk period of time when he had several different girlfriends one after the other and I said, 'Wait don't get a reputation because in that location'll come a betoken where the girls will grab on to that'.

"He took it on lath but whether he tries to alive by that mantra I've no thought.

"Equally far as I know, Harry doesn't have a girlfriend at the moment. They're very rarely in the aforementioned identify for him to exist able to do that.

"He should ride the moving ridge. Anybody would be mad to turn down what they're doing but information technology doesn't look very skillful from a girlfriend or prospective partner's point of view, does it?

"I've been married three times and so I wouldn't say anyone should accept a leaf out of my volume."

Although Des and Harry have ­maintained a bond, Des says now his son is so famous, he has to keep track of him on Twitter.

"The downside for me is I hardly see him. But on Father's day Harry sent me texts saying 'Love yous more all the world, kiss kiss kiss,' from LA and Gemma bought me a nice bottle of wine from her and Harry."

And he added: "I'g just very proud to be his dad but I don't desire to exploit that either, I but want to exist here if he needs me."