Ed Sheeran quits Twitter following Game Of Thrones backlash

Ed Sheeran’s Twitter account has been deleted following criticism of his recent Game Of Thrones cameo.

The Shape Of You singer’s appearance in the hit fantasy series divided opinion among fans after it aired in the debut episode of season seven and now he appears to have deactivated his account on the social media site.

Sheeran had previously limited his activity on Twitter, saying that he could not cope with the online hate directed at him.

His role in Game Of Thrones involved just two lines – “It’s a new one”, in reference to a song that Maisie Williams’s character Arya Stark heard him singing, and “Worst place in the world”, about King’s Landing.

But fans of the show complained about having a celebrity included in a scene.

Still cross about the Ed Sheeran cameo. Felt like a 1990s sitcom where the audience whoop when a guest star 'unexpectedly' drops by #GoTS7— Becky Howard (@_beckyhoward) July 18, 2017

While others ridiculed his acting abilities.

However, some people thought that the criticism had gone a little far if it had driven him off Twitter.

WTH?! Ed Sheeran deleted his twitter acct?!!— Maye (@sheena_ga) July 18, 2017

ed sheeran is the kindest guy ever and yall made him delete his twitter account because of the unnecessary hate— Alessia (@liamshug) July 18, 2017

Sheeran had been booked for the episode as a surprise for superfan Williams, who sat alongside him during the cameo.

The hate Ed Sheeran is getting for appearing on GoT is so stupid. It was a gift for Maisie, she deserved it and he didn't "ruin the scene".— hot flight attendant (@ILikeItOOC) July 18, 2017

His Instagram account is still active and he shared photos from the set following his performance, captioning one: “Throwback to the time I was a Lannister.”

Recently, Sheeran had explained that he was no longer on Twitter and any tweets were automatically generated by his Instagram account, but now his page has disappeared completely.

He said at the time: “I’ve actually come off Twitter completely. I can’t read it.

“I go on it and there’s nothing but people saying mean things. Twitter’s a platform for that.”

Despite the criticism of Sheeran, the episode drew in the largest overnight audience ever for a Game Of Thrones instalment on Sky Atlantic.

Taking into account viewers from both the US and UK as it was simulcast on both sides of the Atlantic, those watching the episode as it aired amounted to 2,830,000.

Of those viewers, 115,000 were UK viewers staying up to watch the 2am broadcast and 788,000 watched the 9pm repeat, but the total viewing figure is expected to increase as fans of the show catch up with it on demand.