Photo: Press
Mind blowing statistics? We got ‘em – so get a load of this: a staggering five million people in the UK alone applied for tickets for Ed Sheeran’s upcoming UK tour. That’s five million people. In just the UK. For Ed Sheeran. Just take a moment to let that sink in.
The singer’s booking agent, Jon Ollier of CAA, revealed the figure to Music Week. He said: “It has been absolutely off the scale. I’m told that, in the UK alone, five million people tried to buy tickets, which is unprecedented.”
The return of Ed Sheeran has caused something of a mania for the troubadour. As previously reported in Gigwise, Sheeran’s takeover of the planet took place with the release of his third album, ÷, which rapidly dominated charts and playlists the world over with all the gusto of a Viking raiding party. But with none of the violence. Or fun.
He’s also been added as the third headliner at this year’s Glastonbury festival after Radiohead and Foo Fighters.
Sheeran’s UK and Eire tour kicks off at the 3 Arena in Dublin tonight. Apart from playing a one-off show for the Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall in London last month, the gigs will be the first domestic dates since his three-night residency at Wembley Stadium in 2015.
Promoter of Sheeran’s current tour, Steve Tilley of Kilimanjaro, is expecting big things from him: "I expect it to carry on where he left off because Ed is a master of confounding everyone's expectations.
"You can't rest on your laurels with Ed, he's very unpredictable; you think he'll do one thing and he'll do another. I've heard songs acoustically that didn't make this record that I thought were outstanding. He just carries on confounding expectations."
He sure does, Steve. He sure does.
Ed Sheeran plays:
April
16/17 The SSE Hydro, Glasgow
19/20 Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle
22/23 Manchester Arena, Manchester
25/26 Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
28/29 Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham
May
01/02/03 The O2 Arena, London
June
22 The O2 Arena
Tickets are well and truly sold out but you might try your luck here.
