Fans camp out overnight ahead of Ed Sheeran gigs

Fans including Morgan Summersgill (centre) have come from far and wide to see his Portman Road gigs in Ipswich this weekend

Fans from across the world have travelled to Ipswich to watch global superstar Ed Sheeran return "home" to Portman Road stadium. With 90,000 fans expected across the next three nights, fans from the US, Germany and closer to home have descended upon the town to welcome the star back to Suffolk.

Visiting that castle

Reuben Librack and Senumi Tebuwna said they had been looking forward to the show for several months

Senumi Tebuwna and Reuben Librack, both 21, travelled from Brighton for the first sold-out show and visited the Suffolk town of Framlingham where Sheeran grew up, about 15 miles north of Ipswich, whose medieval castle he wrote a song about.

"Yesterday we went to Framlingham Castle because that is where he [Sheeran] filmed Castle on the Hill, so we did the whole tour," Ms Tebuwna said.

"We've been looking forward to this for two months."

Mr Librack added: "I saw Myles Smith was playing as well and I'm a big fan."

'Worth the drive'

Tina Hoff and Linda Kennedy travelled from Bournemouth to see Sheeran on two of the three nights

Tina Hoff, 58, and Linda Kennedy, 56, also arrived on Thursday night from Bournemouth.

"We're seeing him again on Sunday," Ms Hoff said.

"First time seeing him... I'm very excited. It's worth the drive."

Ms Kennedy echoed her friend's excitement.

"I thought if we're coming up this way we may as well go to as many as we can and we don't know if he's going to be doing any more over here for a while.

"As soon as they said he was playing here I thought that was it, I'm getting tickets."

'17th show'

Marlene Krueger has travelled from Germany to see all three nights at Portman Road

Marlene Krueger, 22, lives in Munich in Germany and travelled on the train to Ipswich.

She was right at the front of one of the queues to get inside Portman Road on Friday and will be attending all three nights.

"It took more than 10 hours because German trains are horrible," she said.

"I always want to be at the front [of the crowd] because it is the best feeling you can have so I came here this morning around 7am.

"It's really hot, but we have these blankets [sun-reflecting sheets] that are really helping.

"I would say I go to a lot of concerts... I think it's my 17th Ed Sheeran show in the last three years; I'm a big fan."

'It's hot'

Caitlin Brundle and Thomas Portway were in the queue at about midday on Friday

Thomas Portway and Caitlin Brundle, both 19, came from Bury St Edmunds, in west Suffolk, and arrived on Friday lunchtime to get in the queue.

"We had wanted to come earlier, but it's hot," Mr Portway said.

"It's only about a four-hour wait [until gates open]. We might have to get an ice cream later.

"It's nice for him [Sheeran] to be here rather than somewhere like London where we'd have to drive far."

Ms Brundle added: "We're very excited, we're big concertgoers so we love a show."

'Paint the town pink'

Fans waiting in the queues early on were given metallic, reflective sheets to place over themselves to avoid the sun

Prior to gates opening there was a mass of fans outside the Sir Bobby Robson Stand

Many of the fans gathered outside Portman Road were wearing pink, inspired by the artwork and marketing for Sheeran's upcoming album Play.

It has also provided the inspiration behind the pink displays and bunting that have been dotted around the town.

• BBC Suffolk's first interview with Ed Sheeran in 2008

• 2019 exhibition at Christchurch Mansion curated by Sheeran's dad

• Sheeran returns to Ipswich pub as part of three-gigs-in-one-day effort

Fans began arriving in the early hours of Friday before sitting in extreme heats of up to 27C (81F) .

Queues for Sheeran's merchandise were also forming early on with fans desperate to get their hands on T-shirts, hoodies and more.

'Tonight's the night'

Mary Farruku did not have to travel far to get in the queues on Friday lunchtime

Mary Farruku, 21, lives in Ipswich and was "really excited".

"I saw him when he was last in Ipswich at Chantry, that was amazing," she said.

"I follow Myles Smith on TikTok and I was really excited to hear that he was here.

"I'm busy this weekend so tonight is the night."

Fan zone

A fanzone, pictured after gates at Portman Road had opened, has been set up in the Cornhill in Ipswich town centre

Areas around Portman Road has been painted pink in the colour of Sheeran's upcoming album

Ipswich Borough Council and Ipswich Central will be hosting a three-day homecoming party in the town centre too.

This will include a Cornhill fan zone from 10:00 to 18:00 BST each day, featuring a large screen filled with Sheeran trivia, live messages from fans and more.

A pop-up shop selling merchandise will be set up, and there will be live busking in Alderman Park next to Portman Road stadium from 13:30 daily.

Stateside fans

Deborah Marshall travelled to Ipswich from Evansville in Indiana

Deborah Marshal, 73, who travelled to the town from Indiana, US, said: "I came a long way because I really, really, really love Ed Sheeran."

"I didn't even know who Ed Sheeran was before 2020 but once I found him I just wanted to follow him," she told the BBC outside Ipswich Town's ground.

"He has helped me through life situations with his music."

Morgan Summersgill, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has travelled to England for the first time to see Sheeran, both on Friday and on Sunday.

She said she was soaking up the atmosphere that has engulfed the town.

"I am a huge Ed Sheeran fan and this is my fifth time seeing him," she said.

"I am so grateful to be here and be a part of it, and tomorrow, to make it even more special, I am getting the 'Play' symbol done [as a tattoo] in Ipswich.

"It is incredible and I cannot even explain how I am feeling."

Fans were patiently queuing to get inside Portman Road stadium at about 16:30 on Friday

Fans have been waiting on the dry grass of Alderman Park outside the concert venued since the early hours of Friday

He 'means so much'

Martin Cox has been queueing to get into Portman Road since the early hours of Friday

Martin Cox, 70, from London, has been a fan of Sheeran since 2010 and turned up outside Portman Road during the early hours.

"I like to be here to get to the front row and to also meet other people who are in the queue," he said.

"He means so much to me because of his songs, the way he performs, and his personality."

Pink is in evidence across the town, including some of the green/brown grass on roadside verges being repainted in honour of Sheeran's return

Sheeran's appearance on the bill at The Swan in Ipswich town centre (now The Swan & Hedgehog) in 2010 turned into an impromptu gig in the street

Tribute act pays tribute

Hayley Judge says she is the only female Ed Sheeran tribute act

Hayley Judge, from south London, claims to be the only female Ed Sheeran tribute act.

She told BBC Radio Suffolk she was looking forward to hearing the singer's new songs, which she is "loving", but added that 2011's The A Team "never gets old for me".

"I used to run an open mic night, and one of the guys came one night, and he played The A Team, and I'm like, 'Oh, that's an amazing song'," she said.

"And then that's how I started following Ed and just started learning his songs and bought a loop station."

A kind of homecoming

Sheeran told the BBC he was excited ahead of the three concerts. He grew up in Framlingham and is a minor shareholder in Ipswich Town FC

Sheeran himself is equally as excited about his huge shows this weekend - but it is not the first time he and his acoustic guitar have popped up in the town.

He performed pub gigs as he made a name for himself in venues including the Steamboat Tavern and The Swan, and he appeared at Ipswich Music Day where local acts perform at the annual free event in Christchurch Park.

After his rise to global superstardom, he played four concerts in the town's Chantry Park in 2019.

In 2021, in the wake of Covid lockdown restrictions, he played a live-streamed gig at Portman Road with no audience present.

He also played an impromptu gig outside the town hall in 2022.

"This is the first time in my entire career that I am actually playing [in front of fans at Portman Road]," he said while talking exclusively to the BBC.

"So this is kind of like a homecoming show, which is going to be good."

Alderman Park was busy with fans waiting to get inside Portman Road