Ed Sheeran: Pupils left shocked by surprise performance

“You could see from their faces they were absolutely blown away with what was happening,” said acting headteacher Adam Lear.

Maxime, who plays bass in a Welsh-language band, was among the pupils who met Sheeran privately.

He said they asked him challenging questions, including how Sheeran manages writer’s block.

“He talked about writing some songs he doesn’t like as much at the moment,” he said.

“He was saying ‘you’ve just got to write as much as you can, try and improve and always believe in yourself’.”

Paige Cooper, 17, was encouraged to continue in her drama and music studies.

“He was talking about how music as a subject is often looked down upon and how he just hustled from school,” she said.