Taylor Swift returned to Wembley on Thursday for the fourth of her eight shows in London.

And fans were delighted when the megastar brought out surprise guest – a long term friend and collaborator Ed Sheeran.

The pair were greeted by screams and huge cheers from the 92,000-strong crowd in London.

During her surprise song set, which Swift changes each gig, the singer-songwriters’ performed their song Everything has Changed from the 2012 album Red, followed by End Game from 2018’s Reputation, Ed features as a singer and co-writer on both tracks.

The duo then sang an emotional acoustic rendition of Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud while bright green lights shone out from the stadium.

Since the two met in 2012, they became fast friends and have continued to uphold their connection over the last thirteen years, with the American born pop star paying tribute to their longevity by describing Ed as a ‘second brother’.

Here FEMAIL takes a look at the long and lustrous friendship of the American-British music duo.

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Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran pictured at Wembley last night after the English singer was brought on for a surprise performance

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Ed Sheeran (left) and Taylor Swift (right) pictured at Z100’s Jingle Ball in 2012, held at New York City’s iconic Madison Square Garden. Since the two met in 2012, they became fast friends and have continued to uphold their connection over the last thirteen years

The two first hit it off in 2012 when Taylor wrote the lyrics ‘as you do’ from Ed’s blockbuster song, Lego House, on her arm during an Australian show.

Later on in the year the pair met  organised by Taylor’s manager – leading to their first in person meet.

The meeting was a success and the singer’s then worked together to work on writing music together.

One song, Everything Has Changed, written by the duo, was featured on Taylor’s 2012 album, Red.

Before the song was released, Ed teased the collaboration by posting an adorable snap of the two together on his Instagram, during a meeting where they met to work on music together.

Later on in the year, they performed together at the Z100’s Jingle Ball in 2012, held at New York City’s iconic Madison Square Garden.

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Pictured: On the final night of Taylor’s Red tour, Ed arrived to give his pre show performance in a clown costume rocking a 10-gallon cowboy hat, sending the American pop princess into fits of giggles

2013

Onstage, the two were such a hit, that Taylor decided to have Ed perform as the opening act for North American dates on her 2013 Red tour.

In 2013, Ed took to Instagram to share a sweet offering from his new found friend, Taylor, who had sent him a jar of homemade jam with a message reading: ‘Yo Ed – I’m really happy for you and I’m gonna let you finish but this is the best jam of all time’.

The words poked fun at her infamous 2009 VMAs moment with Kanye West.

On the final night of Taylor’s Red tour, Ed arrived to give his pre show performance in a clown costume rocking a 10-gallon cowboy hat, sending the American pop princess into fits of giggles.

The two were snapped up backstage after the sell out show which raked in more than 14,000 fans in Nashville.

The two solidified their bromance later that year, after they had completed touring together, by sharing an adorable picture of Instagram of them both sipping on personalised mugs.

She captioned the cute selfie, ‘Ed told me to caption this ‘SWEERAN,” sealing their friendship for years to come.

During this period, the evident closeness between the two singers naturally drew romantic speculation from fans before Ed finally shut down rumours, insisting the two were only friends.

He told New Zealand’s TVNZ that he had spent the night in Taylor’s hotel room but solely for the purpose of showing her some new music.

He confessed: ‘I did stay there ’til four and I did leave in the same clothes, but I was playing her my new record. It was strictly that kind of thing,

‘Literally, I went in there and we passed the guitar back and forth and played songs to each other.’

While insisting the bond was platonic, Ed  admitted he found the media speculation entertaining.

‘The thing that impressed me with the media is that because they wrote about it, my mates believed it. And my mates are texting me being like, ‘Is it true?’ So I said it wasn’t but the fact that people can believe it makes me feel like a bit of a stud, you know?’

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Taylor and Ed pictured in 2014 on the European leg of her blockbuster The Red Tour

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At the Victoria Secret’s show in the same year, the two opened the show with Taylor’s latest hit, Blank Space, with Ed following up with a performance of Thinking Out Loud, but came together at the end for a curtain call

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The two musicians were seated next to each other during the 2014 Grammy awards, where they were spotted chatting the night away

2014 

The two musicians were seated next to each other during the 2014 Grammy awards, where they were spotted chatting the night away.

Last night’s Wembley performance is just one of a number of shows they have done together with Ed having made a special guest appearance when the Red Tour moved through London back in February 2014.

At the Victoria Secret’s show in 2014, the two opened the show with Taylor’s latest hit, Blank Space, with Ed following up with a performance of Thinking Out Loud, but came together at the end for a curtain call.

A year after Ed thought he’d put to bed rumours of the two sparking romance, his 2014 song, Don’t, received further speculation with many convinced that the lyrics – which were about romantic betrayal – were about Taylor,

Denying this, he told Parade Magazine that the song was really about his former flame, Ellie Goulding.

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The duo pose during the 2015 Billboard Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena

2015 

Ed and Taylor marked a successful three years of friendship in 2015, posting a sweet selfie of the two smooshing their faces together for Instagram.

For America’s celebratory independence day, the pair shared a jokey snap of Ed donning a British Revolutionary War jacket with Taylor Swift waving a US flag in a faux dispute.

Alongside the picture, she wrote: ‘When Ed shows up in a red coat for the 4th of July because he just can’t let it go.’

2016 

The two were pictured together again at the 2016 Grammys, enjoying long platonic chats.

At the event, Ed won Song of the Year over his friend, Taylor, who responded ecstatically, jumping with joy for the win.

Just days later, the Blank Space hitmaker wished her red headed friend a good birthday message on Instagram.

She wrote: ‘I don’t think he ever knew how inspired I was by his drive and passion to constantly create new art.

‘But it’s his 25th birthday today, so I’m saying it now. You deserve everything you have, and everything you will continue to achieve, Ed.’

At Taylor’s 4 July party in 2016, neighbours of the pop singer claimed they had heard the two musicians partying the night away, capturing an audio of the friends  ‘… Baby One More Time’.

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At the 2016 Grammys, Ed won Song of the Year over his friend, Taylor, who responded ecstatically, jumping with joy for the win

2017

 In 2017, Taylor released her album, Reputation, which included the song End Game, co-written by her good friend, Ed, as well as featuring a guest rap verse from Future.

The song marked the second official collaboration between the two.

Marking the well received collaboration between the charting artists, they gave yet another performance together at 2017 Jingle Ball.

Five years into their long standing bond, Ed told Rolling Stone that Taylor ‘would be there is everything ended for me,’ noting the close knit bond that had formed between the musicians.

He continued saying: ‘Taylor is kind of an anomaly in that sense. She’s omnipresent because she’s the most famous woman in the world, so she can’t make the decision to not be in the press.’

Discussing a pivotal bonding moment, Ed told GQ in 2017 that the two had connected over their similar experiences at secondary school.

He remarked: ‘Taylor was never the popular kid in school. I was never the popular kid in school.

‘Then you get to the point when you become the most popular kid in school — and we both take it a bit too far.

He added: ‘She wants to be the biggest female artist in the world and I want to be the biggest male artist in the world. It also comes from always being told that you can’t do something and being like, ‘F–k you. I can.’

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The co-writers performed together at the Z100’s Jingle Ball in 2017

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Ed and his wife Cherry at the Met Gala earlier this year

2018

In 2018, Ed got engaged to his now wife and long term lover, Cherry Seaborn.

In a behind-the-scenes video of the making of their song End Game – the song co-written by Ed and Taylor – the English singer revealed the helping hand that his pal had played in sparking romance with his wife.

On the track, Ed raps: ‘After the storm, something was born on the Fourth of July’ a reference to getting together with Cherry at Taylor’s famed July 4 parties.

She began: ‘I wanna talk about the Fourth of July line because that makes me really happy.’

 To which he answered: ‘Well, you see, it’s kind of a play on words — well, not really a play on words. There’s a film with Tom Cruise called Born on the Fourth of July. My relationship started on the Fourth of July.’

Engaging in some quick banter, Taylor playfully teased: ‘At whose house?’

He added: ‘At Taylor’s house. So the story was, I was at Taylor’s party, and then a girl I went to school with who’s pretty cool ended up being in Rhode Island… I was like, “Taylor, can she turn up?” And here we are.’

Before, Taylor gushed over Cherry: ‘Ugh, she is the coolest.’

A year following Taylor’s annual Fourth of July bash, she helped commemorate the pair’s anniversary with a rib-tickling pun-filled sign.

Taylor asked: ‘Remember the sign that I made for your first anniversary?’, which Ed quipped: ‘Happy Anniversa-Cherry?’

She corrected her pal: ‘Happy Ed-iver-Cherry! I’m still excited about it. It took me so long to think of both of your names…’.

In the same year, Taylor shared a hilarious video on Instagram where she gets Ed to sit in front of a camera that’s been set up, encouraging him to get closer and closer so the red head grows more enlarged.

Jibing at her friend, Taylor said: ‘I just want to start by saying that this is what he does, he tries to elevate himself geographically so he can seem better than me,’ before Ed, clearly in on the joke, replied by saying: ‘Totally.’

Taylor went on: ‘Experts will study this and say that you’re, like… peacocking right now.’

In 2018, both popular musicians were nominated in the same category for that year’s American Music Awards

 In another hilarious Instagram video where they poked fun at the mutual achievements, Ed said: ‘Taylor, the AMA nominations came out. It’s me, you and Drake.’

They each responded by telling the other, ‘You’re going to win,’ before agreeing they thought ‘Drake’s going to win.’

Filmed while taking a hike together, Taylor jokingly asked Ed, ‘It’s called exercise. Have you ever done cardio? Strumming a guitar doesn’t count.’

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Taylor and Ed sat near one another at the 66th Grammy awards in 2022

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Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift pictured after their surprise performance at Wembley last night that sent crowds into a freny

2022

In 2022, when Ed released his track The Joker And the Queen, Taylor was first to be featured in music video where the two marked a full circle moment in their friendship.

The video includes Ava Ames and Jack Lewis, who featured as children in the music video for the duos collaboration, Everything Has Changed, which was released 10-years-old.

 2023

In a 2023 interview, Ed opened up about his longstanding friendship with the American singer during a conversation with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, admitting she had become like a kind of therapy for him.

Speaking to Zane, he said: ‘I have long, long, long conversations with Taylor about stuff just because I feel like she’s one of the only people that actually truly understands where I’m at,’ he explained, ‘because she’s solo artist, she’s stadiums.’

Before the radio conversation, Ed explained that he and Taylor had spoken for an hour and a half before.

He told Zane that the two regularly share with each other how they are feeling, whether it be work or elements of their person lives, with Taylor being a kind of therapy to the Lego House hitmaker.

He said: ‘I mean that in itself is kind of therapy as well because you’re actually talking to someone that genuinely gets it, that has all the things that you feel and have insecurities about and how other people treat you or how your family treats you, how your friends treat you, she’s just basically in the same sphere.’

He also credited Taylor with having helped him write a number of tracks on his 2023 album, Subtract

Taylor introduced The Nationals Aaron Dessener to Ed when they were working on Red, Taylor’s version together. in which Ed contributed to two of the pop princess’ songs, Run and Everything has changed.

 Encouraged by his friend, Ed went on to work with Aaron, who helped co-create every song on the 2023 album.