Game of Thrones fans knew that Ed Sheeran would make a cameo in season seven, but they had no idea they would be seeing him so soon, or in such a meaty role. The singer popped up in the season premiere in the most unsubtle of ways, leading fans to take to social media to air their grievances.

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*Spoilers for the season 7 premiere of Game of Thrones to follow*

In the scene, Maisie Williams's Arya Stark stumbled across the singer in the forest, where he was playing tunes and eating squirrels with some pals. There were a number of close-ups, and he even delivered some rather innocuous lines.

It was all a bit much for some.

In less aggravating news, the song that Sheeran sings, titled Hands of Gold, appeared in the original books, albeit in quite a different manner. It was sung by a bard named Symon Silver Tongue in an effort to blackmail Tyrion Lannister, as the words concern the character’s secret lover, Shae.

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The cameo is the most significant musical appearance in the GoT, but not the first. Coldplay's Will Champion featured at season three’s Red Wedding and indie group Of Monsters and Men popped up as travelling musicians in Braavos, but none of them had speaking roles. The writers must have really admired Sheeran's acting chops.

UK fans can watch the Glastonbury headliner in tonight's replay of the episode on Sky Atlantic.

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Game of Thrones season 7 is on at 9pm on Monday 17th July on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV

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