CHART-TOPPING singer Ed Sheeran performed two sold-out shows in the city.

The singer-songwriter took to the stage at Concorde 2 in Brighton on Saturday – once at 2pm and again at 7pm.

The concerts were an opportunity for his fans to see the 31-year-old musician try out new songs in front of a smaller crowd ahead of his stadium tour this summer.

Tickets to both shows at the 600 capacity seafront venue, which were announced in February, sold out within minutes.

Photographs from within Concorde 2 show Ed performing on stage with his guitar, while images from outside the venue show many fans trying to catch a glimpse of the superstar.

In a post on Instagram, Ed said the series of “low-key” shows are an opportunity to try out new material.

“I’m going to be doing some warm-up shows for my tour in the next few weeks,” he said. “These are very low-key shows where I get to try out all the new tunes before taking them into the stadiums. Some nights there will be mistakes.

“But that is where the fun starts.”

He recently played three warm-up shows at the Electric Ballroom in London.

Ed last toured stadiums during his 2017-2019 Divide Tour, playing more than 250 shows to some seven million fans, with Divide becoming the most attended and highest grossing tour of all time, breaking U2’s record.

The Mathematics Tour, which is due to start this summer, will see Ed play tracks from his forthcoming fifth album =, pronounced Equals, live for the first time, and will feature a new production set-up with the musician performing in the round.

The tour’s official name is + – = ÷ x, in reference to his string of studio albums.

It will include five nights at London’s Wembley Stadium and four nights at Manchester Etihad Stadium.

Sussex musician Maisie Peters is due to support Ed on his huge tour this summer.

The 21-year-old singer-songwriter from Steyning will play shows across the UK, Ireland, central Europe and Scandinavia, alongside Ed from April to September.

Ed shot to fame in 2011 with the launch of his chart-topping single The A Team, the lead song on his first album, which was released in September that year.

An Ed Sheeran fan who attended the early show said it was “the best experience ever”.

“To get to see somebody of his level perform in such a small, intimate venue was pretty special. I won’t be forgetting that for some time."

Jo Owen, who attended one of the concerts, said: “He was so fab. I loved it.”

Meanwhile, Vicki Falconer added: “He was just great.”