Ed Sheeran Cut With Sword During Royal Knighting
Ed Sheeran has reportedly been injured in a mock knighting incident at the Royal Lodge in Windsor, UK. The Sun has reported that the singer received a cut on his right cheek from a ceremonial sword wielded by Princess Beatrice of York.
The incident occurred at a dinner party held late last week at the royal residence attended by Sheeran and girlfriend Cherry Seaborn. James Blunt, his wife Sofia Wellesley, and a gathering of royal acquaintances were also in attendance.
According to an inside source, talk turned to honors following dinner and Blunt joked that he would like to become “Sir James.” Princess Beatrice reportedly said that could be arranged and disappeared, returning with the ceremonial sword. The source for The Sun explains.
“James played along with the prank and got down on one knee as he would if he were at Buckingham Palace being honoured by The Queen. Beatrice who was in great form, held the sword above him and said ‘arise Sir James’, just like her nan would at the Palace.”
“But she must have misjudged the weight or something and, instead of lightly tapping him on the shoulder, she swung it back, not knowing Ed was standing right behind her.”
According to witnesses at the event, the blade cut into Sheeran’s face inches away from his right eye. The singer was reportedly taken to a nearby hospital where he had the cut attended to, receiving several stitches on his right cheek.
“A couple of the guests said it could have been worse and he could have been blinded in the eye.”
Princess Beatrice was said to be “inconsolable” following the incident, and Sheeran, eager to downplay the situation, returned to the lodge and resumed the evening.
“Everyone was totally shocked and apparently Beatrice was very upset. But Ed was the perfect gentleman and told her it was just an accident.”
While Beatrice’s father Prince Andrew was away in Mexico on a trade mission at the time of the incident, Beatrice’s mother, The Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, is understood to have been in attendance. The Duchess is no stranger to prank ceremonies herself, having reportedly staged mock knighting’s in the past.
The incident first came to light when Sheeran was spotted attending a concert at London’s O2 Empire. The singer posed for photos with fans, which quickly went viral as reports of the sword mishap began to surface.
While representatives for Sheeran and the royal family have so far refused to release statements on the incident, it is understood there is no ill will between the parties.
Most recently, Sheeran has been in the news for an impromptu concert he performed at the hospital bed of 9-year-old Melody Driscoll. Driscoll, who is battling an undiagnosed terminal illness and is normally nonverbal, lights up at the mention of Sheeran, according to her mom Katrina. After the community utilized their resources to reach out to Sheeran’s management, he appeared at the Southern England Hospital to surprise Driscoll.
Speaking to Inside Edition, Driscoll’s mom Katrina describes the scene.
“She started dancing and singing and smiling and giggling,” Driscoll said.
“He’s keeping our daughter alive, but in his eyes, you could tell he was the one honored to meet Melody.”
Driscoll, who refers to Sheeran as her “boyfriend,” was reportedly overjoyed with the star’s hour and a half visit and often views the footage on her mom’s phone to make sure she didn’t imagine it.
Sheeran is set to perform his only live gig of the year this coming Wednesday, November 30, at London’s Natural History Museum as part of his work with the East Anglia Children’s Hospice Foundation in support of sick children.
[Featured Image by Phil Walter/ Getty Images]
