Ed Sheeran gifts Ryan Tubridy with signed guitar as presenter set to ...
British pop star Ed Sheeran has gifted Ryan Tubridy with a signed guitar as the presenter prepares to bow out as host of The Late Late Show.
Sheeran appeared on the Friday's show for an in-depth interview to mark the release of his new album, '-' (pronounced 'Subtract').
He gave the signed guitar to Tubridy, stating that the presenter had always "been very good to me over the years".
A shocked Tubridy, who will present his final Late Late Show on May 26, thanked the singer, saying he was "very moved" by the gesture.
He added: "You know what, I have a guitar at home, and this is one of my secrets that I've never shared. I have about four chords. And every now and again I might pick it up and strum away quietly. But now, I have no excuse. I'd like to apologise to my neighbours in advance."
He said Sheeran was one of the nicest people you could ever meet in showbusiness, on air and off.
In return, Tubridy gifted Sheeran with four Wexford jerseys for his family, as the singer's roots are in the county.
Over the course of the interview, Sheeran spoke about his new album which was influenced by the challenging events in his life last year, including his wife Cherry Seaborn being diagnosed with a tumour while pregnant and the death of his close friend Jamal Edwards.
Edwards founded the music platform SBTV in 2006 that helped launch Sheeran’s career and died in February 2022 at the age of 31.
Sheeran said that his wife, who is now good and getting "regular check-ups", encouraged him to seek therapy for his grief. He added that writing his new album helped address some of his grief.
It comes as Sheeran recently won a US copyright lawsuit over his song Thinking Out Loud, but vented his frustration at having missed his Irish grandmother’s funeral for the trial.
The musician was alleged to have used parts of Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On for his 2014 hit, which claimants said shared “striking similarities” with the 1973 soul classic.
He was taken to court by the family of Ed Townsend, who co-wrote Gaye’s song.
After his win, Sheeran described himself as “just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy” and criticised the lawsuit.
Speaking outside court in New York, he said: “I’m obviously very happy with the outcome of this case and it looks like I’m not going to have to retire from my day job after all.
“At the same time, I am absolutely frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all.”
He added: “Having to be in New York for this trial has meant that I have missed being with my family at my grandmother’s funeral in Ireland. I won’t get that time back."
Anne Mary Sheeran or Nancy as she was known passed away last week at Castle Gardens Nursing Home in Enniscorthy. She was laid to rest on Wednesday, May 3.
His song Nancy Mulligan was inspired his grandmother's "sort of Romeo and Juliet romance" with his grandfather.
