1. Ed's first guitar was a gift from his uncle

Ed received this life-changing gift when he was 11 and was described as a natural performer in his 2004 school report. His classmates voted him as "most likely to be famous".

2. Ed's first-ever tattoo was a paw print on his left arm!

Ed Sheeran has more tattoos than we've had hot dinners. He got his first tattoo when he was 18 years old and chose a cat's paw on the inside of his arm. Why a cat's paw? "No particular reason," the flame-haired songstrel reveals. Or should that be paw-ticular?

3. Ed did his first gig at only 11 years old!

In 2002, Ed played live for the first time near his home in Framlingham, Suffolk. It would be a little while before he'd upgrade to football stadiums and arenas around the world.

4. He names his guitars!

Ed names all of his guitars. They include Lloyd, Felix, Cyril and Nigel and are named after his hard-working road crew!

5. His favourite board game is Monopoly!

What does a touring musician do to relax? They have a game of Monopoly! Ed loves the game so much that Monopoly have created an Ed Sheeran edition of the game, which will be released in the summer of 2024!

6. He loves cats!

Ed has two cats! He has an orange tabby cat named Dorito, and a Scottish fold called Calippo. Yes, after the ice pop!

7. His fans are like breakfast cereal!

Well, sort of. Katy Perry has her KatyCats, Ariana Grande has her Arianators, while Taylor Swift fans are known as Swifties. Ed's fans are known as Sheerios, which sounds a bit like the popular breakfast cereal!

8. He got ride of his phone!

According to news reports, Ed hasn't owned a smartphone since 2015. The reason for ditching the gadget was to help his mental health. "I got really, really overwhelmed and sad with a phone. I just spent my whole time just in a very low place," Sheeran said. "I got rid of it, and it was like a veil just lifted."

9. He loves Oreos! 

His favourite cookie is the Oreo! We're not sure if he's a split-and-lick type of person or throws them down his neck like a seagull, along with a glass of milk.

10. He loves collecting LEGO!

Ed loves building stuff with Lego in his spare time and even wrote a song called Lego House. He's also got a Lego head tattooed on his arm!

11. His nickname used to be Teddy!

Like many people called Edward, he was given the nickname Teddy when he was little. You'll notice that he calls his Instagram account 'teddysphotos' and lent the cute name to another product which you can read about later on...

12. A fan once baked him a hair cake…

Some fans like to draw pictures and give them to their idols. One Ed fan went one step further and baked him a cake... which was full of hair. We don't think that's all that appetising, to be fair.

13. He once 'melted' his foot!

While in Iceland, Ed burned his foot in a hot water spring and it took ages to heal. “I have a lot of accidents,” he revealed, “and we were up on top of a volcano and my foot slipped in [a hot spring]. And as [his friends] peeled [his boot] off, all the skin came with it. When you have a burn, don’t take the sock off!” His foot has now healed.

14. Ed loves ketchup!

He loves ketchup so much, he has a tattoo of the famous Heinz logo on his arm. In 2019, Heinz created his very own 'Tomato Edchup' to celebrate the Suffolk star's love of the fruit-based sauce.

15. He nearly decided on the stage name Redward!

Ed thought about using the name Redward as his stage name when he was 18. A few months later, the Irish twins known as Jedward became very popular and Ed quietly binned the idea!

16. He's a fan of Cool Runnings

Ed loves to relax by watching a great movie, so it's no surprise at all that he's a big fan of the 1993 comedy sports film Cool Runnings!

17. He's friends with Monica Geller!

In 2013, Ed became a lodger at Friends star Courtney Cox's Californian home and stayed for three months and did his share of housework and making tea!

18. He has matching tattoos with Harry Styles!

Both Ed and Harry have matching tattoos. Harry was introduced to Ed's tattoo artist Kevin Paul and the two singers decided to get matching Pingu tattoos. “I met Harry through Ed. Ed told me his mate Harry wanted to get a tattoo so gave him my number," Kevin explains. "At this point I didn’t know it was Harry Styles. I turned up at Holloway in North London, and there he was."

19. Eminem helped him overcome a stutter

When Ed was a child, he had a stutter. It was only through rapping along to Eminem's famous songs that he overcame his speech impediment.

20. He's written songs with some of the world's biggest stars!

Ed has collaborated with loads of famous musicians who want a touch of Suffolk magic sprinkled into their compositions. He's worked with Justin Bieber, Stormzy, One Direction and Taylor Swift.

21. He grew up supporting Ipswich Town!

Ever since he was a child, Ed has supported Championship hopefuls Ipswich Town. In May 2021, it was announced that he was to sponsor the club's shirt. “The Football Club is a big part of the local community and this is my way of showing my support,” said Ed during the pandemic. “I have always enjoyed my trips to Portman Road and I’m looking forward to going back there as soon as supporters are allowed into stadiums again."

22. He has a Fresh Prince tattoo!

Ed loves The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air so much, he has the 'prince' part of the show's graffiti logo tattooed on his left bicep!

23. He's appeared in a Star Wars film!

Ed has popped up in TV shows like Game of Thrones and Beatles alternate-reality movie Yesterday. Did you know he appeared in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker? He played a stormtrooper and an odd looking creature called Engi Golba!

24. He changed an album after taking advice from a taxi driver!

Before Ed released his album X, a conversation with a taxi driver led him to release a family-friendly version so his daughter could listen to it!

25. He has his own range of hot sauces

As a fan of hot sauce, it's no surprise that the Shape of You star decided to make his own brand. There's a Tingly sauce and an Xtra Tingly sauce, if you have fireproof tastebuds!

26. He's a Hufflepuff!

Ed doesn't need to take our Which Hogwarts House Will You Be Put Into? quiz as he's arrived at the answer all on his own. "Slytherin’s pure-blood and I’m kind of mixed between Irish and English," Ed revealed. "Ravenclaw’s very smart. Gryffindor are really brave and [growl]. And Hufflepuff’s, kind of, just the one that…isn’t. So, I guess I’d be Hufflepuff.”