Ed Sheeran filmed a pre-recorded interview for Friday's Late Late Show where he told host Ryan Tubridy how he wishes his grandfather, an ardent royalist, could have seen him pick up the MBE.
The chart-topper was awarded the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in June and says he would have loved for his Belfast-born granddad to see him receive the honour.
Sheeran also performed Nancy Mulligan on Friday's show, which is the song inspired by his grandparents William and Anne Sheeran who married despite being from different religions.
He said to Ryan Tubridy: "Nancy Mulligan is about my grandfather and my grandmother. My grandfather is a Protestant from Belfast and my grandmother is a Catholic from Wexford and when they got married it was like a real thing. But they went against people, got married and ended up being married for 66 years before my grandfather passed away."
The MBE was a "really big deal" for himself and his Dad, he added.
"My grandfather was a huge, huge royalist and loved the royal family, had commemorative plates and sh*t. He was bang into it. He sadly passed away in 2013 but when the MBE came in, I remember being with my Dad and being like, ‘ah sh*t, wouldn’t it be cool if granddad was alive now to see this’," he said.
In the wide-ranging interview, Sheeran also talks about the inspiration behind his hit song Galway Girl, his love of Ireland, the song he has written in case the Bond producers ring him and why he's giving social media a wide berth.
As well as performing his number one hit single Perfect, Sheeran also performs his take on the Pogues' Christmas classic Fairytale of New York alongside Picture This, Lisa Hannigan and Beoga.
Tune into The Late Late Show on Friday, December 15 at 9.35pm on RTÉ One.
