Ed Sheeran indulged his thrill-seeking side with a visit to Queenstown’s popular Shotover Canyon Swing last week, as part of a whirlwind trip to New Zealand that also saw the ‘Thinking Out Loud’ singer get a tattoo from a local artist.
However, the British musician wasn’t alone – pictures from the Shotover Canyon Swing adventure company’s Facebook page, released yesterday, show that Ed appeared to be in the company of Katie Jackson, daughter of director Peter Jackson.
Ed Sheeran takes the plunge in Queenstown. Photo: Facebook
“So…Ed Sheeran came to play in our playground last week!! Challenging himself to both the Canyon Fox and Canyon Swing,” the company wrote in a Facebook post sharing the photos of the outing.
“Come back anytime Ed!”
Katie, a 20-year-old actress who is believed to be based in Wellington, was the one who first brought Ed’s music to her father’s attention. Ed later went on to write ‘I See Fire’ for Peter’s film The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in 2013.
“[Katie] said that I just had to listen to him. That he could be the perfect fit for the end of the film … and she was right,” the film director revealed during a fan event.
Ed is said to have spent a whole week in Queenstown, and the canyon swing wasn’t his only extreme activity of choice during his stay in the South Island. Katie and Ed’s girlfriend Cherry Seaborn also accompanied the singer on an adrenaline-packed ride on the Shotover Jet.
Later, the group were also spotted taking in the sights of central Queenstown including a stop at local haunt Skybar, where the musician was greeted by a few of his Kiwi fans.
During the trip, Ed also took some time out to get a permanent reminder of his trip at a local tattoo studio, where Scott Mcfarlane got to ink a new design on his skin.
The artist told [Stuff] that Ed was a “humble, appreciative and a very thankful guy”.
He also revealed that Ed had said he loved Queenstown and was planning to travel to Australia and Japan next. Coincidentally, Peter Jackson also had a tattoo done at the same studio when he was in Queenstown in 2011.
