Harry Styles arrived to perform at the BRITS this evening despite being left ‘shaken’ by a terrifying knifepoint mugging in London on Valentine’s Day.
The former One Direction star, 26, was out in Hampstead, in the north of the capital, when he was confronted and threatened by a man who pulled a knife on him.
The thug demanded cash from the singer and Styles quickly complied, managing to get away unharmed.
A source said the singer ‘played it cool’ and kept calm despite his attacker’s blade.
But they added he was ‘shaken up’ by the robbery, which came just hours before his ex-girlfriend Caroline Flack was found dead at her London home.
The shocking mugging emerged ahead of Styles’ performance at the BRIT awards tonight.
He was seen arriving at the event and greeting fans while wearing a black ribbon in tribute to the late Love Island presenter.
Harry Styles (right and left arriving at the event) is due to perform at the BRIT Awards at The O2 Arena this evening
Harry Styles taking a selfie with a fan as he leaves BBC Radio 2 on February 14. Later that same day he was robbed at knifepoint in north London
Harry Styles, dressed in all black in London yesterday, appeared to be keeping a low profile after he was the victim of a knifepoint mugging on Valentine’s Day
On Styles’ frightening mugging, the source told the Mirror: ‘He actually played it pretty cool, quickly giving the assailant cash, keeping himself and the guy calm and getting the situation over with.
‘Understandably though it left him very shaken up afterwards.
‘Given how Caroline took her own life the next day, the pressures of a new album and a performance at the BRIT Awards this evening, it’s fair to say this is the last thing poor old Harry needed.’
Styles has yet to comment on Flack’s death, with the pair having dated from November 2011 to January 2012.
Styles’ mother Anne Twist took to Twitter on Saturday posting: ‘Heartbreaking #ripcarolineflack’.
She later retweeted the heartfelt message: ‘Nobody should be made to feel like they don’t belong on this earth , nobody! Nobody should be made to feel so frightened and bereft of options they decide to take their own life.’
Harry was wearing a black hooded top, Nike joggers and dark sunglasses, with a sombre expression yesterday
Harry Styles leaving BBC Radio 2 studios in Wogan House on February 14. He was ‘shaken up’ by the robbery, which came just hours before his ex-girlfriend Caroline Flack was found dead at her London home
Though not confirming whether Styles was the victim, the Metropolitan Police did say they had received reports of a robbery in the area on the night in question.
A spokesperson said: ‘Police are investigating reports of a knifepoint robbery in Spaniards Road, Hampstead.
‘Officers were contacted on Saturday, 15 February regarding the incident which happened at 23.50hrs on Friday, 14 February.
‘It was reported that a man in his 20s was approached by another man and threatened him with a knife.
Former lover: In 2011, Caroline was 31 when she started romancing 17-year-old Harry
‘The victim was not injured however, cash was taken from him.
‘No arrests and enquiries are ongoing.’
As well as her ex, the former One Direction star was a close friend of presenter Flack, who tragically took her own life on Saturday at her Stoke Newington flat in north east London.
Flack was 31 when she started dating 17-year-old Styles, which caused controversy at the time.
They first met when the TV personality was fronting X Factor spin-off show The Xtra Factor, while Harry was a contestant on the 2010 edition of the singing competition with One Direction.
The television host admitted she knew the singer had a crush on her before she pursued a romance with him.
She said of their brief romance: ‘I already knew that he had a crush on me, he’s made it pretty obvious as he’s said it in magazines.’
‘I’ve never felt I was much older than Harry. I still feel 18 and I probably act that way half the time’
Former One Direction star (pictured) was a close friend of presenter Caroline Flack, who tragically took her own life on Saturday
Death: Caroline Flack was found dead at her Stoke Newington home on Saturday February 15
‘Although it was just a bit of fun we decided it was best to keep it to ourselves as we were both working for Simon Cowell.’
Despite Flack’s death and his own mugging, Styles is set to perform at the BRITS in London’s O2 Arena tonight, where he is nominated for two gongs – British Album and British Male Solo Artist.
The mugging comes after a homeless man who stalked Styles avoided jail last year.
Styles had spotted Pablo Tarazaga-Orero, 26, sleeping rough in a bus stop outside his £3million London home in March 2019.
He offered him some food or a hotel room and eventually bought him some edamame beans from a vegan cafe on Tarazaga-Orero’s request.
But the Spanish national’s behaviour soon escalated and a three-month stalking campaign began, the BRIT Award winner told the court.
Run: Harry headed out for a run wearing a navy blue hoodie, Nike joggers, shades and a beanie hat, teamed with bright red trainers
Pablo Tarazaga-Orero, 26, is pictured arriving at Hendon Magistrates Court in October to be sentenced for stalking Harry Styles (right in New York in March last year)
He posted notes and money through his letterbox, and followed the singer, who is worth an estimated £50million, to the pub, camping outside his house for two months.
Styles called police on Tarazaga-Orero in May after he tried to ‘grab’ him while he was running in Regent’s Park.
In October, Tarazaga-Orero was sentenced to a 12-month community order including 30 days of rehabilitation activity, and ordered to pay £335 in total including £250 costs after being found guilty of stalking at Hendon Magistrates Court.