Bitter family rift at the heart of Ed Sheeran’s Emerald Isle roots: How Suffolk- born singer’s beloved grandparents were shunned by loved ones, as he cops backlash for ‘identifying culturally’ as Irish

The devastating family rift at the heart of Ed Sheeran’s roots is revealed after he sparked a backlash for claiming he ‘identifies culturally’ as Irish on the The Louis Theroux Podcast.

While the singer, 34, was born in Halifax, Yorkshire, and famously raised in Suffolk, he has many family members in Ireland and fondly recalls childhood holidays spent there. 

His father John’s family hails from Belfast, and is one of eight siblings born to Nancy Mulligan and William Sheeran.

While Nancy was a Catholic from the Republic of Ireland, her husband was a Protestant from Northern Ireland, so when they fell in love during the Second World War it caused huge ructions on both sides of the family.

It was this bitter fall out in Ed’s paternal lineage that inspired his hit 2017 song Nancy Mulligan, named after his grandmother.

The folk track tells the tale of his grandparents being shunned for marrying outside their religions.

Reflecting on the romance, Ed said: ‘They got engaged and no one turned up at their wedding. He stole all the gold teeth in his dental surgery and melted them down into a wedding ring, and they wore borrowed clothes to get married. 

‘And just basically have this kind of Romeo And Juliet romance, which is like the most romantic thing’.

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Opening up on his heritage on the latest episode of The Louis Theroux Podcast, pictured, Ed explained: ‘I class my culture as Irish. I think that’s what I grew up with 

While the singer, 34, was born and raised in Suffolk his father John hails from Belfast , and the bitter family fall out inspired his 2017 song (Pictured with late grandmother Nancy)

The folk track tells the tale of his grandparents Anne ‘Nancy’ Mulligan and William Sheeran who were shunned for marrying outside their religions

Despite the couple, who met in London during WWII before returning to their native Ireland years later, not being supported by their families they went on to start their own and welcomed a whopping eight children over their almost 70-year marriage. 

As well as Ed’s father John they shared Jim, Bill, Peter, Chris, MaryAnne, Bridget and the late Sally as well as 23 grandchildren, with Ed spending many holidays wth his grandparents in County Wexford.

William died in 2013, while Nancy passed away in 2023 aged 98, but Ed was forced to miss her funeral due to his ongoing and highly publicised copyright trial in New York – that he eventually won. 

Speaking at the service, Ed’s father said the singer was ‘so upset’ to miss his beloved grandmother’s funeral but he has to ‘defend his integrity’ across the pond.

He then turned to the ‘Romeo and Juliet’ love story referenced in Ed’s song: ‘Mum met Dad, a dental student, at a Guy’s nurses’ home party’.

‘Friendship turned into love, but the Northern Ireland Presbyterian side of dad’s family did their utmost to end the relationship’. 

‘Their wedding was attended by only one family member – mum’s twin sister Peggy. They lived above that dental surgery in South London with a growing family. Eventually five boys and three girls. Mum joked to us that she had originally wanted 11 children so she could feel the football or cricket team.’

When Ed’s song inspired by the romance was released in 2017, a sweet video emerged of his grandmother listening to it for the first time.

Reflecting on the romance Ed said: ‘They got engaged and no one turned up at their wedding. He stole all the gold teeth in his dental surgery and melted them down into a wedding ring,’

Despite the couple not being supported by their families they went on to start their own and welcomed a whopping eight children (Nancy pictured)

As well as Ed’s father John (pictured) they shared Jim, Bill, Peter, Chris, MaryAnne, Bridget and the late Sally as well as 23 grandchildren.

The then 92-year-old told RTE News: ‘I’ll never think of him as being famous, I have to say. He’s exactly the same as he always is when he visits.

‘And it’s very rare because he’s always working and when you think he was working from the age of 14, you’d have to feel sorry for him, you know he’s so tired but he loved it.’

Following Nancy’s death Ed revealed the loss inspired the song Supermarket Flowers on his album Divide.

He said on social media: ‘When my grandma passed away I wrote a song called Supermarket Flowers about the situation. The verse lyrics are about packing up her room at that hospital. The care she received was incredible; the people who worked there so lovely, compassionate, funny and caring.

‘Me and my family became very close to the nurses who worked there and my mum is still in touch with them now. I just wanted to make a tribute to my gran, She was the musical one in my family. Hopefully I will pass that on to my kids’.

Opening up on his heritage on the latest episode of The Louis Theroux Podcast, Ed explained: ‘I class my culture as Irish. I think that’s what I grew up with. 

‘My dad’s family is … he’s got seven brothers and sisters. We’d spend all of our holidays in Ireland.

‘My first musical experiences were in Ireland, I grew up with trad music in the house. So I identify culturally as Irish, but I was obviously born and raised in Britain.’

The Galway Girl hitmaker went on to say that he was ‘really proud’ of his Irish cultural roots, and that he didn’t feel that he had to ‘just be British’, as it was down to ‘how you feel’.

When Ed’s song Nancy Mulligan was released a sweet video emerged of his grandmother listening to it for the first time back in 2017 (pictured)  

Nancy passed away in 2023 aged 98, but Ed was forced to miss her funeral due to his ongoing and highly publicised copyright trial in New York (pictured) – that he eventually won

He said: ‘I don’t overthink it but I do feel like my culture is something that I’m really proud of and grew up with and want to express.

‘And I feel like just because I was born in Britain doesn’t necessarily mean that I have to just be [British], there’s loads of people I know that are half this or quarter this.

‘I don’t think there’s any rules to it. It should be how you feel and how you were raised and what you lean into.’

And when asked whether he gets ‘a lot of love’ in Ireland, the chart-topping star also praised the country as being ‘my second home’.

He said: ‘I’d say it’s basically my second home, musically. I’d say Ireland is the place that I am most successful musically.’

‘I come from an Irish family, spent most of my childhood summers and birthdays and Christmases in Ireland listening to trad music bands,’ Ed previously said in an interview. 

However Ed’s comments sparked backlash as fans took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to hit back at his claims he is Irish as they claimed he was ‘pretending’. 

They penned: ‘Identifies just means to pretend’; ‘does Ed Sheeran hold eligibility to start for the Irish national football team?’; ‘They can have him’;

‘It’s not where you’re born. It’s your bloodline that determines what you are. Cliff Richard was born in India. Is he Indian? You can be born anywhere in the World. That doesn’t automatically make you part of that culture.’; 

The Galway Girl hitmaker went on to say that he was ‘really proud’ of his Irish cultural roots, and that he didn’t feel that he had to ‘just be British’, as it was down to ‘how you feel’ 

However Ed’s comments sparked backlash as fans took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to hit back at his claims he is Irish

‘Whilst he’s of the Irish diaspora, he’s English’; ‘Why can’t he just identify as himself’; ‘That Galway Girl must’ve spun his head around’; 

‘Ed Sheeran tour posters for the top of the bonfire’; ‘Grand so. Tell him he’s now eligible to join the Gardai’

‘His song Galway girl has to be up there with the worst songs of all time…absolute rubbish with all the usual Irish clichés…the only thing he missed in the lyrics was shouting ‘up the ra’..seems a nice lad but terrible music’.

However others understood his point of view as they argued: ‘Well his da is Irish so he’s perfectly entitled to.’;

‘You can be born and raised for some time anyway in England and still identify culturally as Irish. It’s not unprecedented’;

‘He has roots. Nothing wrong with identifying with your heritage. He looks like us too.’