Cheryl’s exes Liam Payne and Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini clash at posh central London restaurant following her split from Liam
HEARTBROKEN Liam Payne clashed with Cheryl’s ex-husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini at a celebrity hang-out following his split from the popstar.
The former One Direction singer, 24, threatened to fight the French playboy, 37, because he was unhappy at the way he treated her, sources say.
Worried staff at The Chiltern Firehouse in central London were forced to intervene to stop a physical altercation, we can reveal.
The older man, who was divorced by Cheryl in 2015, offered to leave the A-list venue to keep the peace.
He and Liam were both there last Friday by coincidence as Cheryl celebrated her 35th birthday nearby.
An onlooker said restaurateur JB was eating oysters when he looked up to see Liam staring at him.
He said: “JB asked his friend why this guy was eyeballing him and then he realised it was his ex’s fella.
“Liam was snarling and beckoning him over for a fight.
"There was a lot of gesturing, goading each other and making threats across the room.
“Staff were worried JB would be provoked as he boxes every day.
"But he assured them he was not looking for a fight and would leave because he was getting on an early flight.”
JB, who wed Cheryl in July 2014 after a whirlwind romance, told his pals: “I’d never react to a kid in an elegant place like that.
"I’m obviously in his head for some reason. But I’d tell him everything is going to be OK.
"He needs a hug, not a punch.”
Sources close to Liam said the incident indicated his strength of feeling for Cheryl and was never going to get physical.
A Liam insider said: “There’s animosity between Liam and JB.
"He feels like he is standing up for Cheryl because JB wasn’t very nice to her.”
The incident happened two days before we revealed Liam and Cheryl had split after 2½ years together. The superstars officially split two weeks ago but kept it under wraps.
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They confirmed it and vowed to focus on their one-year-old son, Bear.
Cheryl, meanwhile, blasted a report claiming mum Joan, 59, was responsible for her split with Liam.
She tweeted: “I hate responding to stuff (especially) at such difficult times but cannot sit here and listen to such nasty, false articles regarding my mam.
"I am a grown woman who is capable of dealing with my own life.
"She is a soft and kind woman who doesn’t deserve to be dragged into something that has nothing whatsoever to do with her.”
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