Key Takeaways
- Amelia Dimoldenberg roasted Ed Sheeran during her SNL UK hosting debut, joking that he was a “world-famous redheaded puppet with a hand up his arse telling him what to say.”
- The jab continued the show’s running Sheeran bit after Annabel Marlow portrayed him as a fence-sitter and Weekend Update mocked his fans the previous week.
- The jokes follow Macklemore’s removal from Sheeran’s Loop Tour over pro-Palestinian remarks, which Sheeran called “the promoter’s decision, not mine.”
Amelia Dimoldenberg became the latest to take a shot at Ed Sheeran.
The Chicken Shop Date star made her hosting debut on the British version of Saturday Night Live on Sept. 26 and wasted no time bringing Sheeran into her opening monologue.
While discussing her rise to hosting the late-night show, Dimoldenberg joked about being "incredibly privileged" to have made it this far, rattling off some of the names she’s interviewed.
"I'm incredibly privileged to have done so many interviews with people like Idris Elba, Cher, and even a world-famous redheaded puppet with a hand up his arse telling him what to say," said Dimoldenberg as a photo of her and Elmo showed up on the screen before switching to another of herself and Sheeran. "No, the other one."
Dimoldenberg, 32, hosted the third episode of the show's second season, with Rachel Chinouriri serving as musical guest. She appeared in several sketches throughout the night, including "Harry Kane and his Babybel," "Wax Museum," "Fashion Sense and Sensibility" and "Love Is Blind: Horse Man."
The Sheeran joke continued what has become a recurring bit on SNL UK.
During the Sept. 19 episode hosted by Jamie Demetriou, Annabel Marlow portrayed Sheeran in a sketch involving King Charles and a rogue AI bot named DIANA.
"I was just outside sitting on the fence," Marlow's Sheeran told Larry Dean's King Charles. "Thing is, Your Majesty, I don't like to take sides. I don't want to alienate any of my fans, humans or robots."
The parody then featured Sheeran singing about both sides of a conflict being equally correct.
Later that episode, Weekend Update hosts Ania Magliano and Paddy Young continued targeting the singer, with Magliano joking that recent controversy surrounding his tour was the worst thing to happen to Sheeran fans "since their head injury."
The show's repeated Sheeran jokes follow controversy surrounding Macklemore's removal from Sheeran's Loop Tour after the rapper made pro-Palestinian remarks onstage. Sheeran attempted to distance himself from the decision, saying it was "the promoter's decision, not mine."
Dimoldenberg's hosting gig comes as she prepares to wrap Chicken Shop Date after a 12-year run.
