Harry Styles is a British singer, songwriter, and actor. You’ve likely heard his pop hits on the radio, or you might know him from his golden days with One Direction. Whether you’re here for your own enjoyment, or you’re looking for information for a project about famous people, you’re in the right place. Read below to discover fun facts about Harry Styles, his childhood, his music and acting career, and what books he reads!
15 Fun Facts about Harry Styles
- The first song he ever recorded was Elvis Presley’s ‘The Girl of My Best Friend’ using a karaoke machine his grandfather gifted to him when he was young.
- Harry Styles has over 60 tattoos, including a matching one with fellow British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran.
- Harry Styles has three solo studio albums. However, his favourite albums by other fellow artists are Astral Weeks by Van Morrison, At Last! By Etta James, Blue by Joni Mitchell, and Rubber Soul by The Beatles.
- Harry came up with the name for his world-famous boyband, One Direction. He said it holds no deeper meaning.
- Harry loves animals. His first pet was a dog named ‘Max’. He later went on to have a pet hamster named ‘Hamster’. However, his favourite animals are turtles.
- Despite being an animal lover, he suffers from Ophidiophobia- a phobia of snakes and serpents.
- Harry had his first kiss when he was only 11 years old.
- Harry is the first, and currently the only, former X Factor contestant to win a Grammy.
- Harry wrote the song ‘Falling’, featured on his second album, Fine Line, in just 20 minutes with co-writer and producer Kid Harpoon. He had just stepped out of the shower, still only wearing his bath towel, when he heard Kid Harpoon playing the piano.
- Harry styles has four nipples.
- Before auditioning for the X-factor, Harry had wanted to become a lawyer or a physiotherapist.
- Harry Styles loves chick-flicks, his favourites being Love, Actually, The Titanic, and The Notebook.
- Harry once paid fellow One Direction member, Niall Horan, $20 to make him a sandwich. Niall took the money, made the sandwich, then ate it himself.
- He wrote a song for Ariana Grande, which is featured on her album My Everything. The song is called ‘Just a Little Bit of Your Heart’.
- Harry Style’s first solo tour, Harry Styles: Live on Tour sold out in minutes.
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Harry Styles childhood
Harry Styles was born on the 1st of February 1994 to parents Anne Twist and Desmon Styles. He has an older sister, Gemma Styles, who is a prominent writer and journalist. You can check out her blog by clicking here. The singer often describes his childhood as being great due to the ongoing love and support received from his parents.
Harry’s parents separated when he was 7, and his mother remarried twice. His late stepfather, Robin Twist, married Anne Twist in 2013. He unfortunately passed away from cancer in 2017. Before beginning a professional singing career, Harry was the lead singer for his band White Eskimo. Despite never reaching Hollywood stardom, they won the local Battle of Bands and even played at a wedding in 2010.
When Harry was 14 years old, he worked at the W Mandeville Bakery in Holmes Chapel. Simon Wakefield, his former boss, has credit Harry as being the most polite staff member they’ve ever had. He has since revisited the bakery as a customer, and during the One Direction 2013 documentary film This is Us.
Harry Styles in One Direction
Harry’s decade-long singing career began when he participated in the British talent competition, The X Factor, in 2010. He first entered the competition singing a Stevie Wonder song. Creator and judge Simon Cowell paired him with fellow contestants Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik. Together, the five formed One Direction, which went on to become one of the most successful boybands of all time.
Over the course of five years, the band released five albums: Up All Night, Take Me Home, Midnight Memories, Four, and Made in the A.M. On top of this, they also went on four world tours, and performed a total of 329 live shows. Zayn Malik left the band in 2015 due to stress. The rest of the band went on hiatus in 2016, after releasing their fifth album (first as a foursome) Midnight Memories.
It is highly unlikely that they will return from the hiatus, as all members are now pursuing successful solo careers. However, they are still all on good terms. Harry even has a star tattoo on the side of his arm with five points, one for each member in One Direction.
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Harry Styles albums
After leaving One Direction, Harry Signed a solo contract with Columbia Records in June 2016. They are the same label that One Direction was signed to. Under this label, he has currently released three studio albums:
Harry Styles
- His self-titled debut album, Harry Styles, was released on the 12th of May 2017.
- The lead single, ‘Sign of the Times’, was released before the album, on April 7th that year. It was the singer-songwriter’s first solo song.
- The album overall is strongly influenced by music from the 1960’s-1970’s. The genre is described as soft rock, rock, and pop.
- In order to promote his debut album, Harry went on his first solo tour, Harry Styles: Live on Tour. The tour ran from September 2017 to July 2018, spanning across North America, Europe, Asia, Oceania, and South America.
- The two fan-favourite songs, ‘Medicine’ and ‘Oh Anna’ were originally written for the album but did not make the final cut. Harry has sung them on tour.
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Fine Line
- Fine Line is Harry Styles’ second studio album. It was released on the 13th of December 2019.
- The album features seven singles: ‘Lights Up’, ‘Adore you’, ‘Falling’, ‘Watermelon Sugar’, ‘Golden’, ‘Treat People with Kindness’, and the title track ‘Fine Line’.
- The album explores themes around breakups, happiness, sex, and sadness, following his breakup from model Camille Rowe.
- The genre is mainly described as pop rock, with influences of progressive-pop, psychedelic pop, folk, soul, funk, and indie pop. Renowned musicians such as David Bowie, Van Morrison, Paul McCartney, and Joni Mitchell have been listed as inspirations behind this album.
- This album was promoted on Harry Styles: Love on Tour, which had to be postponed due to the ongoing pandemic.
You can get your own CD of Fine Line by clicking here.
Harry’s House
- Harry’s House, Harry Styles’ third album, was released on the 20th of May 2022.
- The lead single, ‘As It Was’, was released before the album, debuting atop the UK and US charts.
- The album is sonically inspired by Japan’s city pop, as well as influences of pop-funk, pop rock, synth-pop, and R&B music.
- The album title was inspired by Haruomi Hosono’s 70s album, Hosono’s House.
- Famous singer and guitarist John Mayer is featured on lead guitar on two songs: ‘Cinema’ and ‘Daydreaming’.
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Harry Styles acting career
Having made his acting debut as a British solider in the 2017 film Dunkirk, Harry has since acted in a handful of other movies. One of his most notable roles includes playing Eros in the 2021 Marvel film Eternals. Despite only briefly appearing in the end credits scene, Harry reportedly received $380,000 for that role. His recent film, Don’t Worry Darling, where he acted alongside critically acclaimed names like Florence Pugh, Olivia Wilde, and Chris Pratt, received mixed reviews. Harry is also seen in the 2022 movie adaptation of My Policeman, originally an LGBTQ+ novel released in 2012.
Books Harry Styles has read
Harry Styles is often photographed reading or carrying books and has even talked about his love for reading in interviews. Below is a list of five books that Harry Styles has recommended, and links to where you can get your own copy.
- My Policeman by Beth Roberts. Set in 1950’s Brighton, the novel follows the lives of Marion, Tom, and Patrick, exploring their relationship in a homophobic society. The film adaptation can be found on Amazon, featuring Harry Styles as Tom. You can get the book by clicking here.
- Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame by Charles Bukowski. This is a series of raw, unfiltered poems, that is said to have deeply inspired Harry’s song writing. You can get the book by clicking here.
- In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan. This is a post-apocalyptic, utopian fantasy novel, that inspired the name for the single off of Harry’s second album, ‘Watermelon Sugar’. You can get the book by clicking here.
- Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. Upon hearing his favourite Beatles song, Toru is transported back to 20 years ago, and must choose between his future and the past. You can get the book by clicking here.
- Love is a Mixtape: Life and Loss, One song at a Time by Rob Sheffield. The author, Rob Sheffield, is a long-time friend of Harry’s. This book is a memoir of Sheffield’s love and loss, told through 15 of his favourite mixtapes. You can get the book by clicking here.
Fun Facts for kids about Harry Styles
We hope you’ve found this article about British singer-songwriter and actor Harry Styles informative and fun. If you want to look for more information about other famous people, you can find some below!