02 May 2023 , 07:49
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Ed Sheeran has been left heartbroken after his beloved grandmother, who inspired his hit song, Nancy Mulligan, has died.
The singer's grandmother Anne Mary – who was known as Nancy Sheeran, but her maiden name was Mulligan – died peacefully at Castle Gardens Nursing Home in the town of Enniscorthy in the Republic of Ireland last Tuesday.
Ed, 32, penned the song Nancy Mulligan for his third album Divide, which was released in 2017.
The hit tune documents Anne's romance with Ed's grandfather William, despite coming from different religious backgrounds.
An obituary for Ed' grandmother said she was a "beloved wife of the late Bill and loving mother of Jim, Bill, Peter, Chris, John, MaryAnne, Bridget and the late Sally and sister of the late Thomas, Jim, May and Peggy.
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Ed Sheeran's beloved grandmother has died (John Minchillo/AP/REX/Shutterstock)"Deeply regretted by her loving sons, daughters, grandchildren, great grandchildren, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, niece, nephews, relatives, friends and neighbours," according to The Sun.
Ed's grandmother and her late husband William Sheeran raised eight children and had 23 grandchildren.
Nancy will be laid to rest in a funeral service at St Patrick’s Church, Monaseed, Gorey on Wednesday.
Ed's grandmother said she 'never thought of him as famous' (RTE)In 2017, Ed's Irish grandmother gushed over her grandson's musical talents as his song Nancy Mulligan gained popularity.
She told RTE at the time of Ed: "He was lovely as a kid and he came every year on holidays once we moved here."
Nancy, who was 92 at the time of the interview, added: "I never think of him as famous, I have to say. He's exactly the same as he always was – if anything he visits and it's very rare because he's always working and when you think we was visiting from the age of 14, I mean you have to feel sorry for him, you know he's so tired but he loved it."
Anne Mary, who was known as Nancy, previously spoke of Ed's song (RTE)Ed also previously discussed the inspiration behind the song, which peaked at number 13 in the charts.
He said: "Nancy Mulligan is about my grandfather and my grandmother.
"My grandfather is a Protestant from Belfast and my grandmother is a Catholic from Wexford and when they got married it was like a real thing.
"But they went against people, got married and ended up being married for 66 years before my grandfather passed away."
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The singer has faced a difficult time in recent weeks as he is currently being sued for copyright over his song Thinking Out Loud.
The family of Ed Townsend, Marvin Gaye's co-writer, allege "striking similarities" between Gaye's hit Let's Get it On and Sheeran's track, Thinking Out Loud.
Townsend's estate is suing Ed Sheeran for $100 million as a result of the claims. The trial is currently in its second week in New York.