SNL UK Skewers Ed Sheeran's Fence-Sitting as Macklemore Fallout Reaches His Philly Show

With a strum of the guitar, Ed Sheeran sits between King Charles and the late Princess Diana, singing "both sides are equally right / no matter the conflict, whatever the fight." This sketch, aired last weekend on Saturday Night Live UK, condensed the Palestine controversy that's dogged the singer for the past two weeks into one self-mocking line: "I'm sitting on the wall."

The saga traces back to Sheeran's 'Loop' tour. His opening act Macklemore was pulled from the lineup earlier this month after shouting "Free Palestine" during a show at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Singer Pink and the Israeli American Council publicly called for him to be dropped from the tour, while Robert Kraft, owner of Gillette Stadium, said the remark caused "deep pain and offense to the Jewish community" — ultimately leading to Macklemore's exit. The fallout spread further, with musicians including FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe, and Beoga, who had been serving as openers or backing musicians, publicly voicing support for Macklemore and withdrawing from the tour.

How Weekend Update Took on Kraft and Sheeran

On SNL UK's Weekend Update segment, hosts Ania Magliano and Paddy Young delivered the controversy as a mock news bulletin: "Sheeran's US tour is in trouble — his opener Macklemore was axed after saying 'Free Palestine' onstage, and this crisis might be worse than their concussions." They then turned their attention to Kraft, dubbing him a "wealthy corpse-maxxer" and referencing his "checkered past." As for Sheeran himself, Young left a pointed setup dripping with sarcasm: "Say what you want about Ed, but he's only ever supported the causes he's allowed to support" — a jab at his long history of publicly backing Ukraine.

The sketch itself wrote Sheeran into a fictional conversation with King Charles and Diana. When King Charles asks him to help with "this terrible war," Sheeran replies, "I don't like taking sides, and I don't want to alienate any fans — whether they're real people or bots, since a lot of my ticket sales come from scalper bots anyway." He then picks up his guitar and says, "When it comes to conflict, sometimes the bravest thing you can do is say nothing at all."

The Saturday night after the sketch aired, Sheeran restarted his tour in real life in Philadelphia, taking the stage with a new backing band. Before the show, he addressed the week's criticism directly with the audience, admitting he'd "made a mistake" and apologizing: "I never wanted to be a musician with a political stance, but this whole thing pushed me into the middle of a debate about free speech and one of the most complicated political issues on the planet." He said he was "talking to people on all sides, trying to figure out how to make a contribution that could help those affected by this terrible time," adding that he was "listening and learning, because I don't know enough."

He also revealed that the controversy had made him consider halting the tour altogether — even questioning his future in the music industry — and that he removed the B-stage, which had previously allowed him to walk into the middle of the crowd, out of "fear of what might happen."

Meanwhile, Aaron Rowe, who had previously opened for Sheeran, called on people to direct their anger at "people like Robert Kraft," while musician Billy Bragg has continued criticizing Sheeran on social media over his pledge to donate $2 million "to aid the Middle East region": "It's not just that the statement is vague enough not to offend anyone — it's that you think you can buy back your integrity."

Sheeran's 'Loop' tour will continue across North America through early November before heading to South America and Mexico City, running through December.