Amelia Dimoldenberg, 32, took aim at Ed Sheeran, 35, during her Saturday Night Live UK hosting debut.
The comedian used her opening monologue to draw a pointed comparison between the singer and a Sesame Street puppet, referencing their widely circulated 2021 Chicken Shop Date interview. Dimoldenberg appeared alongside Sheeran on her YouTube series four years ago, an episode remembered for its signature awkward tension and her gift of perfume-sprayed bedsheets.
“I’m incredibly privileged to have done so many interviews with people like Idris Elba, Cher, and even a world famous world-famous redheaded puppet with a hand up his arse telling him what to say,” she began, as a photo of herself with Elmo from Sesame Street appeared on screen.
“No the other one,” she continued, as the image switched to one of herself and Sheeran from their Chicken Shop Date episode.
The dig lands amid fresh scrutiny of Sheeran’s touring decisions. The “Shape of You” singer recently removed rapper Macklemore from his Loop Tour after Macklemore made pro-Palestinian speeches during a September 4 performance. The remaining support acts subsequently stepped down in solidarity. Sheeran said in a statement that he “spoke with venues all week to try and build a bridge,” adding that “the venue and promotor’s decision was final.”
Dimoldenberg’s joke also arrives as she closes a chapter on the platform that made her famous. The host recently announced that Chicken Shop Date would end after 15 years, revealing in an Instagram post that the idea began when she was 17 and imagined meeting “the love of my life on a date in a chicken shop.”
“I’ve spent my entire twenties sitting across from the most incredible people, people I’d always dreamt of meeting,” she wrote. “All of them charmed me (some more than others) and I definitely charmed them.”
She continued: “I thought maybe it would be a part of me forever, and in some way it always will, but I feel like it’s now time to move on from this adventure and onto a new one.”
Dimoldenberg teased that new dates would be announced soon.
Sheeran, meanwhile, has continued his Loop Tour but faced additional complications when shows at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, were canceled over the weekend due to severe weather forecasts. A statement cited “the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved” as the top priority and noted refunds would be available at point of purchase, with Ticketmaster buyers receiving automatic refunds.
The comedian’s SNL UK appearance marks her latest high-profile gig as she transitions beyond the chicken shop format that defined her career.