Ed Sheeran's impromptu serenade to jogger passing by has the internet swooning

Running is often touted as the simplest exercise to boost heart health, but one woman’s heart skipped a beat for an entirely different reason during her jog. In mid-September 2024, she was on her usual morning run along a canal when she spotted none other than Ed Sheeran sitting on a boat nearby. Sheeran, who was in the middle of filming a new video, noticed her too—and paused the shoot to serenade her with a love song. The unexpected and heartwarming moment was caught on camera by Sheeran's crew and later shared on his Instagram (@teddysphotos).

The sweet gesture has sparked a wave of excitement, with fans now hoping to “accidentally” bump into the "Shape of You" singer on their morning runs. Sheeran captioned the Instagram reel, "Was filming a video on the canal today, played a request. If anyone knows the runner lemme know so we can have their POV video for the lols." The clip, which has already racked up over 3 million likes, shows the jogger meeting Sheeran's gaze as he waves and asks, "Any request?" 

The woman slows down and says, “Can you do ‘Tenerife Sea’?” Sheeran wholeheartedly accepts the request and starts strumming the strings of his acoustic guitar. Meanwhile, the jogger scoops out her mobile phone from inside the purse and records the singer playing exclusively for her. He keeps on playing and singing, and she keeps on walking side-by-side matching the speed of the boat.

Oblivious of the fact that he’s a music star, Sheeran keeps on performing the song, keeping his eyes on the ardent fan, while his tattooed arm plucks on the instrument’s strings. Once he was finished with the song, he told the runner, “Have a good rest for your run.” She waved goodbye and continued sprinting on the sidewalk.

Later, PEOPLE reported that the runner, who received the spontaneous surprise of a lifetime was a woman named Nikki Atkins. According to the outlet, she posted her version of Sheeran’s video in her Instagram stories tagging @teddyphotos, and writing, “This is why we run girls!” Describing the surreal moment, Nikki spoke on the BBC Breakfast show, saying, it was so unexpected. “In my head, I was thinking like, 'Oh my God, he's actually singing to me. I'm not going to remember this if I don't film it this... I'm going to black out. I'm not going to know what's going on,’” she said, and added, "In that video, it looks so rapid that I pull my phone out, but I was just kind of like, 'Oh my God. Ed Sheeran is singing to [me]. I need to record this.’”

On Instagram, people showered compliments and praises on Sheeran. “Ed Sheeran still acting like he's just a random street musician even though he's the top of the music industry makes me love him even more,” commented @val.dressed.in.pastel. Bollywood star Anil Kapoor also commented on Sheeran’s post with a flurry of heart emojis. Meanwhile, the “Perfect” singer-songwriter gave his fans a pretty wild excuse to go for a run. “Teddyyy I’m running tomorrow, expect you to be there at 8am sharp,” declared an Instagrammer @anggitakputri_.