Ed Sheeran tests positive for Covid-19 a week before album release

Chart-topping singer confirmed the diagnosis on his Instagram account

Ed Sheeran at Global Citizen Live in Paris in September. The singer is isolating after catching the coronavirus. Getty

Ed Sheeran has tested positive for Covid-19 less than a week before the release of his fifth album.

The chart-topping singer-songwriter, 30, said in a statement posted on Instagram that he intends to give interviews as planned and performances from his home.

The new album, = or Equals, is the latest instalment in his symbol series and is scheduled for release on Friday, October 29.

It is among the year’s most highly anticipated music releases and includes the UK No 1 singles Shivers and Bad Habits.

“Hey guys," he said. “Quick note to tell you that I’ve sadly tested positive for Covid, so I’m now self-isolating and following government guidelines.

“It means that I’m now unable to plough ahead with any in-person commitments for now, so I’ll be doing as many of my planned interviews/performances as I can from my house.

“Apologies to anyone I’ve let down. Be safe everyone.”

Last week, he performed in London as part of the inaugural Earthshot Prize awards, which were hosted by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Next week, Sheeran is to join Apple Music’s Zane Lowe live to play songs from his new album and take questions from fans. He has a number of other media commitments lined up.

Sheeran lives close to Framlingham in the English county of Suffolk, where he grew up.

He had been taking a break from music after his wife, Cherry Seaborn, gave birth to their daughter, Lyra Antarctica Seaborn Sheeran, in August 2020.

Sheeran shot to fame in 2011 with chart-topping single The A Team, the opening song on his first album, which was released in September that year.

In 2022 from April to September, Sheeran is scheduled to play live shows across the UK, Ireland, central Europe and Scandinavia, including a three-night run at London’s Wembley Stadium, as part of The Mathematics Tour.

He last played stadiums during his 2017-2019 Divide Tour, playing more than 250 shows to about seven million fans, with Divide becoming the most attended and highest grossing tour yet, breaking U2’s record.