LONDON: One Direction fans have reacted with dismay to a report that band member Louis Tomlinson is to become a father.

Publicist Simon Jones declined to comment Wednesday on a People magazine report saying 23-year-old Tomlinson is expecting a child with American stylist Briana Jungwirth.

Fans responded on Twitter using the hashtag #OhNoLouis. On the streets of London, some refused to accept the news. Clara Foxonet, a 16-year-old fan from France, said "It can't be real! It's not possible."

Seventeen-year-old Australian fan Kiri Deane-Spread Speir said the news was "a shock. But I am not going to get angry ... If he is happy, I am happy."

The chart-topping British boy band was formed in 2010. It dropped from five to four members after Zayn Malik quit the group this year.