The Settinellis prove the boy band isn’t just for teenagers.

When One Direction arrived on Aussie shores last week, teenage girls around the country went into meltdown, but they weren’t the only ones. For Noula and Nunzio Settinelli, both 41, “1D” mania is a way of life! “I think they could be as big as the Beatles,” says Noula. “It is just a matter of time.”

Kristen, 15, was floored when her parents morphed into One Direction fanatics after hearing them in the car. “When Mum and Dad found out they were coming [to Australia] they wanted to get tickets too!” says Kristen. Despite taking a day off work to queue up, Noula missed out... only to find Kristen’s friend won passes to see them at last week’s Logies.

“My mum begged her for a ticket but she said no,” laughs Kristen. The band, who cracked the big time on UK’s The X Factor, has given the family a new hobby. “We are constantly looking at photos, listening to CDs and decorating my daughter’s room,” says Noula. “Sometimes people say to me, ‘You are a 15-year-old!’ But I guess because I had the kids young, it makes me feel young along with them.”

Nunzio has also been subject to friendly ribbing from his workmates, after being caught printing out posters of the boys. But daughter Kristen certainly isn’t complaining. “My friends are like, ‘Oh my God, your mum is so cool, she adores them so much. I wish my mum was like that,’” says Kristen. And like every 1D fan, the Settinelli family has their favourites.

Read more about the Settinelli family and their love for One Direction, plus get your FREE One Direction poster in this week’s Woman’s Day on sale Monday April 16, 2012.