One Direction Star Niall Horan’s Twitter Prank Backfires Badly
One Direction star Niall Horan is under fire in the British press today after he allegedly accessed another musicians Twitter profile and tweeted that the other man was “experimenting” with his sexuality.
The Independent reported on the incident.
“Horan, along with TV and radio presenter Eoghan McDermott, is believed to have posted from the profile of Niall Breslin, who rose to fame with band The Blizzards. The pair reportedly wrote, “I’ve been experimenting with my sexuality. No conclusions reached as of yet but it’s been a fun ride so far.”
The Mirror says that Breslin quickly pointed out that the Tweet did not come from him and was from McDermott and Niall Horan, writing, “That last tweet came to you from @eoghanmcdermo and @NiallOfficail. School boy error.”
The original tweets have now been deleted, but the furor is a long way from dying down and further tweets from Breslin acknowledging and apologising for their content remain live. Twitter users have voiced their concerns about how the issue was dealt with, saying, “Kind of disappointed in tweet from @nbrez account joking about experimenting with your sexuality…”
She continued, “What’s more unsettling are all the favourites/retweets… I’m a fan of @nbrez but not ok with that type of ‘humour’.”
Niall Horan has made no comments about the prank as yet, but McDermott did apologize on Twitter, saying that the prank was ill thought out and childish and no offence was intended.
@nbrez @ChaseTheStars_ Yep, very childish and ill-thought out. Apologies indeed. Zero offence intended to any beautiful person.
— Eoghan McDermott (@eoghanmcdermo) December 27, 2014
Despite being the victim of Niall Horan’s prank, Breslin has come in for some criticism for the way he responded. Some Twitter users said Breslin, who is an ambassador for mental health organisation Cycle Against Suicide (CAS), has not addressed the potential ramifications of the tweet on the LGBT community.
One user said, “Disappointing to see @nbrez brush aside a joke about sexuality made on his account. Many young people struggle desperately with their sexuality.”
Another said, “When one of the main issues in that area [LGBT] is mental health a throwaway joke like that is really disappointing.”
Niall Breslin requested that his work for CAS not be questioned and replied to his critics.
This latest Twitter storm involving Niall Horan and One Direction will be disappointing to a band who have been praised by fans for lending their support to the LGBT community. Less than two weeks ago, Niall Horan and his band mates told their gay fans, “Don’t be afraid to be the person that you are.”
Horan told fans, “Johnny Depp is pretty sick and he’s a really nice fella too.”
Niall Horan should be only too aware of the damage Twitter pranks can cause. Only a few days ago, he was himself subject of one when rumors circulated that he was about to quit the band.
Ironically, it is not the first time that Niall has been caught up in this type of prank. In the past, he played a Twitter prank on his good friend Laura Whitmore’s account.
Whilst this episode will no doubt teach Niall Horan a valuable lesson, it is unlikely to dampen the irrepressible Irishman’s sense of fun or love of a prank.
