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Ed Sheeran is adding a new feature to “Sheeranville”, his sprawling 16-acre estate in Suffolk, England. But some of his neighbours aren’t too chuffed by the idea.
As part of a renovation to his $5 million (R75m) property he shares with his wife, Cherry Seaborn, and their daughter, Lyra Antarctica, the Thinking Out Loud singer is constructing a private, two-storey chapel, complete with a private burial crypt.
The 31-year-old’s building plans reportedly include a chamber on his estate big enough to fit two bodies under a slab in the floor of the chapel. But his neighbours have taken an issue with the Grammy-winner’s desire for a private final resting place on his grounds.
“I feel I must comment on this plan for a place of worship in a garden,” resident Anna Woods told the South West News Service. “The area is well-served by local churches and I feel there is no need for a well-known person to create his own island of calm when lovely places of worship are abound in the area.”
The area’s district council is expected to give the pop star the go-ahead for the new addition to his property which, despite his neighbour’s protests, already reportedly has a man cave, a detached farmhouse, a treehouse and an underground music room.
In 2019 Ed asked for permission to add a “place of worship".
“[It would] address an important need for a private place of retreat for contemplation and prayer, for celebration of key life and family milestones, family and social gatherings, marriages [and] christenings,” his planning application said.
“Are celebrities now so detached from reality that their every living breath, and now even the act of dying, be apart from the rest of us?” added Anna.
Ed’s property portfolio, including flats, houses and mansions, is said to be worth $78m (R1,175 billion), but the singer spends most of his time at his family estate in Suffolk.
He and Chelsea grew up and attended school in the area they now live. Ed has also bought several neighbouring houses too, presumably to appease the neighbours as renovations went on over the years.
One neighbour told The Sun the singer had “ruffled a few feathers” as they had to live with the “constant din” of construction work.
Others, however, have been less bothered by his village expansion setup.
“Ed is a super guy and really friendly. He's just a down to earth Suffolk boy at heart – so who can blame him for wanting to settle down here? It's a lovely part of the world”, one resident told The Daily Mail.
“He has bought all the properties next door. I guess it means that there's nobody to complain if he plays his music too loudly.”
SOURCES: STANDARD.CO.UK; EDITION.CNN.COM; NYPOST.COM; THESUN.CO.UK; NYPOST.COM; DAILYMAIL.CO.UK
