Ed Sheeran’s first no1 Christmas hit was almost derailed by Beyonce’s twins

ED SHEERAN celebrated his first-ever Christmas No1 ­yesterday thanks to his A-list duet with BEYONCE.

But his wait for a festive chart-topper might have  gone on for longer — because the collaboration of single Perfect very nearly didn’t happen.

The Brit superstar has revealed he was reluctant to pull in the favour because  he didn’t feel it was an appropriate question to ask the diva while she was pregnant with her twins.

In an exclusive interview, Ed told me: “She was obviously ­pregnant and I wanted to ask her — I just didn’t know if it was the right thing to do.

“I didn’t want to be like, ‘Hey, I know you’re just about to have twins but do you mind working?’ So I kind of like left it and just put the feelers out and said, ‘If you would be interested, would you consider it?’ But, yeah, she ended up doing it.”

Sales and streaming figures for the tune were added to those for the two other versions of the song Ed has also released — smashing his festive No1 rivals including X Factor winners RAK-SU.

He described the achievement as a “dream come true” — which could also be said of his studio ­session with Queen Bey.

He said of their  recording: “I did it  in the studio with  her which was a  really, really amazing  experience — to see her work and just how spot-on she is.

“I’d be like: ‘Oh, can we do this line a little bit different?’ And she’d be like, ‘cool’ and she’d go in and sing it perfectly, in one take.”

Their duet has been showbiz’s best-kept secret for the past year — as Ed hatched the plan to get  to Christmas No1 even before  his hit album Divide was released in March.

He said: “When I made the album, there’s always a push at Christmas for the album and  I was like, ‘Perfect is going to be the Christmas single to push the album’.”

It is now a festive  classic.

Read more from Dan Wootton's Bizarre Column

Katy stripes a pose

IT’S been a turbulent year for KATY PERRY but she is ­ending 2017 on a high.

Her fourth album Witness failed to strike the same chord as her previous releases, peaking at No6 when it came out in June. But she insisted it has all been a great experience.

She discussed her year when writing about  a photoshoot in Miami on Thursday, above,  just after releasing the video to new single Hey Hey Hey.

She posted on Instagram: “I’m reflecting on a year that has redefined what winning means to me. And the definition  for me this year was simply happiness and gratitude.

“After a year of peaks and valleys (remember, it’s all a journey), I wanted to end 2017 with a fun, triumphant piece  of pop candy.”

She was always going to struggle  to top 2016 and that  paddleboard trip with a naked  ORLANDO BLOOM.

Biz Bit

DAYS after announcing she will kick off a  Las Vegas residency at  the end of next year, LADY GAGA is working on new music. JUSTIN BIEBER’s Friends collaborator BLOODPOP shared a photo online  of them both in the studio.

JAMES BLUNT’s high-pitched tones have made him millions.

But now he is so scared he will lose them that he has given up smoking.

He finally kicked the habit over the summer, but confessed he has found it tough to stay off cigarettes after a drink.

He said: “What I find the biggest struggle is when I’ve been drunk and then I occasionally smoke. And I’ve really struggled with that because, as a singer, it’s really, really bad. And then I start sounding like a man rather than a high-pitched voice that has looked after me for many, many years.

“But touch wood, I haven’t been doing it since June and I’m really glad because it was a waste of time.” James released  fifth  album The Afterlove in March, which he has been touring across the world since October.

Giving up smoking should at least make the long flights a bit more bearable.

Strictly smoochy

MOLLIE KING and AJ ­PRITCHARD had been trying for weeks to keep their relationship secret.

But now they clearly don’t care who knows after they were caught kissing in a Manchester bar on  Thursday night.

Punters at Albert’s Schloss beer hall saw the couple, above, lock lips – and it wasn’t just an innocent quick peck.

An onlooker said: “This was Mollie and AJ properly going public with their romance.  They were all over each other all night and kissing and cuddling. They only  had eyes for each other and they were properly going for it.

“They  didn’t leave each other’s side.”

I revealed earlier this month that the pair, who finished fifth on Strictly, were now together  after falling for each  other during the competition.

Mollie described pro dancer AJ as her “hero” after they were eliminated.

He’s certainly got the superpowers to lure Mollie.

Just payne-ful

LIAM PAYNE  is continuing to go the extra mile for JUSTIN BIEBER.

After giving the Canadian his phone number in March to offer guidance on handling the limelight, he’s now ­taking more heat  off the singer by ­outdoing him in  fashion faux pas. His decision to pair  a  Supreme headband with a checked hoodie, trackie bottoms and  gold chain, above, have made Liam,  out in New York yesterday, the first celebrity to steal my Just Bin It stamp from the teen favourite.

Justin has made regular appearances in my column due to his fashion fails.

Maybe Justin offered Liam his stylist in return for his life advice.

Biz Bit

CHARLI XCX almost enlisted DUA LIPA for her new Pop 2 mixtape, but she revealed Dua’s crazy schedule meant they could not get into the studio together. However, Charli said:  “It would definitely be fun to write for her.”

Sam's so smitten

SAM SMITH and BRANDON FLYNN have made their romance Instagram-official.

The lovebirds shared their first selfie on Thursday, posing  in a lift wearing comedy hats.

Flynn, star of Netflix hit  13 Reasons Why,  shared  his snap with the caption “Rare sighting in London” as they prepare to spend their first Christmas together.

Nothing screams love more than matching unicorn headgear

Biz Bit

TAYLOR SWIFT’s app has not got off to a great start. She launched The Swift Life last week, but it has already been over-run with homophobic ­comments and DONALD TRUMP supporters. And it failed to make Apple’s app store top 200 chart.