Louis Tomlinson blasts 'losers' after being trolled on WhatsApp

Louis Tomlinson has been forced to change his phone number after being targeted with abuse on Whatsapp.

The 24-year-old singer tweeted in the early hours of Tuesday morning (16Aug16) that he has had enough, after receiving some "disgusting" comments on the phone service.

"Time to change my number .. Getting some disgusting stuff on what's app... Losers !" he wrote.

Louis' One Direction bandmate Niall Horan was quick to reassure his pal he wasn't alone, replying: "@Louis_Tomlinson me too mate. Horrific Some of the things people are saying."

The singer's fans also jumped to the defense of their idol, with the hashtag #RespectLouis trending on Twitter just minutes after his revelation.

Louis later attempted to make a joke of the situation, suggesting he and Niall should use their musical skills to destroy the trolls.

"Maybe we should challenge them to a rap battle and destroy them in 64 bars (rap length)?" Louis wrote, while Niall replied, "That would be way too strong! Would take us less than 64 bars, we're sooooo good," before adding, "I wonder when they'll stop annoying us!"

Niall himself is well aware of the support given by fans on Twitter, after he blasted an admirer who took a picture of him asleep on a flight, despite him previously declining to pose for a snap because he was unwell.

Along with the blurry picture, the unnamed user wrote, "And to sum up the perfect European adventure, I sat directly next to Niall from One Direction for 9 hours on my flight home from London last night. He was sick and asked for no selfies, but here is a pic I snapped when he was sleeping lol he was so friendly... Not a British Duke... But an Irish popstar will do. Thanks for treating me so well Europe!"

Niall shared his frustration over the invasion of privacy and added the caption, "I think this (stuff) is unreal. I mean if you can't sleep on a plane without people taking photos of you, what can u (sic) do."

Directioners quickly back Niall up, with the hashtag #RespectNiall trending as other fans slammed the intrusive picture as "disrespectful" and "disgusting".