'I just love him': 'Ecstatic' fans line up to give Cork welcome to Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran fans Kate Sheehan and Sarah Walsh, both from Mallow. Picture: Jim Coughlan

On Thursday afternoon in Cork City, the sun shone, Sheeran was blaring on repeat on every corner, and the red carpet was rolled out to give the red haired singer-songwriter with Irish roots a rebel welcome.

Having played a similar string of shows in Páirc Uí Chaoimh in 2018, Ed Sheeran returns to Cork on Thursday for the first of two near sold-out gigs that will see the stadium packed with near 70,000 fans (over half the total population of Cork City) over two days.