Two 11-year-old girls have been left 'devastated' after their dreams of seeing pop idols One Direction were dashed when they were involved in a three car crash en route to the show.
Cousins Katie Norman-Rial, from Bowthorpe, and Sophie Norman, from Sprowston, were on their way to see the pop heartthrobs' Wembley Stadium concert on Friday, having been bought tickets for Christmas.
Sophie's mother, Lynda, was chaperoning the girls with her sister, Laura Rial, who is 16 weeks pregnant.
But the journey was halted soon after midday when their Renault Megane was involved in a collision on the A11 near Thetford which put the girls' mothers in West Suffolk Hospital.
Mrs Norman and Ms Rial suffered minor injuries and were released after four hours, but the girls were left devastated as they could not make the show.
'After the accident, they were in shock at first. They'd gone flying across the car and were screaming,' said Mrs Norman.
'We calmed them down, and it wasn't until we got to the side of the road and the police told us we wouldn't be able to get there that they realised what was going on.
'They were hysterical. It was their only present for Christmas and they have been counting down the days. They'd had their nails painted especially, were wearing their t-shirts and we'd been listening to the album in the car.'
Mrs Norman said the family was 'lucky' not to have been more seriously hurt in the incident, which also involved a Renault Trafic van and a Honda Jazz.
But Sophie and Katie may have to wait some time before their next opportunity to see Harry, Zayn, Liam, Louis and Niall, with the boys set to embark on a world tour until next year.
Mrs Norman added: 'They had friends going to the show who put their pictures on Facebook and the girls are so disappointed. Hopefully we'll get a chance to see them in the future but I don't think it's going to be for a while.'
Hundreds of One Direction fans were also frustrated in their attempts to reach the show after a coach crash on the M25.
Can you help Katie and Sophie get to a One Direction show? Let us know by emailing newsdesk@archant.co.uk
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