document_title: Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

question_text: when does spike come back after season 2

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text: Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

text: Appearances[edit]

text: Television[edit]

text: Early history[edit]

text: Spike's story before he appears in Sunnydale unfolds in flashbacks scattered, out of sequence, among numerous episodes of both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. The first flashback occurs in Buffy Season Five's "Fool for Love", and reveals William as in fact a meek, effete young man (and an aspiring poet) who lived in London with his mother, Anne.[5] Anne would often sing the folksong "Early One Morning" to her son, right up until the time he was turned into a vampire.[6] William's surname is given as "Pratt" in the non-canon comic Old Times and is written on the label of his jar of blood in the comic Spike: Asylum #002. This surname became official with the publication of the canon comic Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 11 #7, in which Buffy calls him by it. The name William Pratt may allude to horror actor Boris Karloff, whose birth name was William Henry Pratt, and can also be understood as the British slang term "prat", describing a person of arrogant stupidity.

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text: Spike is one of the youngest recurring vampires on the show, though the evidence of his age is contradictory, as the concept of the character evolved over time. When he was introduced in "School Hard" (season 2), Giles read that he was "barely two hundred," implying that he was either born or sired in 1797 or slightly earlier. In "The Initiative" (season 4) he said he was 126, thus born or sired in 1874. Flashbacks in "Fool for Love" (season 5) show that Spike was sired as an adult in 1880. Assuming he was in his early to mid 20s when he was sired, Spike would be in his 140s during the series. In the comic Spike: Asylum #002, Spike's jar of blood has a label giving his assumed human birth date in 1853, about 27 years before he was sired.

text: In 1880, William was a struggling poet, often mocked by his peers who called him "William the Bloody" behind his back because his poetry was so "bloody awful."[5] The true origins of this nickname were not revealed until three years after it was first mentioned in Season Two, when it was believed to have purely violent connotations.[7] William showed a strong capacity for loyalty and devoted love, which remained after his siring. After his romantic overtures were rejected by the aristocratic Cecily, William wandered the streets despondently and bumped into Drusilla. She consoled him, drained him of blood and made him drink of her blood, thus transforming him into a vampire – "siring" him, in the jargon of the series.[5] Spike's grand-sire Angelus became his mentor (leading Spike occasionally to describe him loosely as his sire): "Drusilla sired me, but you, you made me a monster."[8] Whereas new vampires in the Buffyverse often delight in killing their families once they become evil, William was a notable exception. Having always been very close to his mother, he turned her into a vampire to save her from tuberculosis. But his mother, as a vampire, taunted William and insinuated he had always had a sexual fascination with her. William chose to stake her because he found he could not bear to see his mother behaving like the soulless vampire he had made of her.[6] She, like most vampires, lacked his unusual capacity for some of the softer human emotions, like love and compassion.

text: After staking his mother, William began a new life with Drusilla, to whom he was utterly devoted. Euphoric with his newfound vampiric abilities, he adopted the poses and trappings of a cultural rebel, affecting a working class East London accent and embracing impulsiveness and extreme violence. He adopted the nom de guerre "Spike" based on his habit of torturing people with railroad spikes – possibly prompted by criticism of his poetry: "I'd rather have a railroad spike through my head than listen to that awful stuff."[5] In "The Weight of the World" Spike mentions having spent "the better part of a century" in delinquency, suggesting criminal activities other than killing for blood. In the company of Drusilla, Angelus and Darla, Spike terrorized Europe and Asia for almost two decades. He had a strained relationship with Drusilla's sire Angelus, who continued a sexual relationship with her despite Spike's strong disapproval.[8] Although Angelus did enjoy the company of another male vampire in their travels, he found Spike's recklessness and lust for battle to be unnecessary risks. Angelus regarded killing as an art, not a sport, and killed for the sheer act of evil; Spike did it for amusement and the rush.[5]

text: In 1894, Spike and Angelus developed a rivalry with the enigmatic Immortal, who later had Spike sent to prison for tax evasion.[9] In 1900, Spike killed Xin_Rong, a Chinese Slayer while in China during the Boxer Rebellion.[5] In 1943, he was captured by Nazis for experimentation and taken aboard a submarine, where he was briefly reunited with Angel.[10] By the 1950s, Spike had reunited with Drusilla, and they traveled to Italy.[9] At some point, Spike also became rivals with the famous vampire Dracula. The enmity between Spike and Dracula was explored in the comic series Spike vs. Dracula, in which their mutual hatred is caused when Spike, along with Darla and Drusilla, slaughtered the Romani (gypsy) tribe who had cursed their patriarch, Angelus, with a soul, although it is unclear if either Spike or Drusilla knew precisely why Darla was so angry with the tribe. That clan (unknown to Spike) was favored by Dracula and he sought revenge for their deaths. Spike later mentions in a conversation with Riley Finn, "Dracula? Poncy bugger owes me £11, for one thing," because Dracula tossed Spike's signed copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula in a fire in 1898. Spike also notes that Dracula's fame has done more damage to vampires than any Slayer, since it made their weaknesses more widely known.[11] Spike attended Woodstock in 1969, whereupon he accidentally became high after ingesting the blood of a hippie, he claims to have spent the next six hours following the incident "watching my hand move".[7] In 1977 he fought and killed a second Slayer, Nikki Wood, aboard a subway train in New York City, taking from her a black leather duster which he wears throughout his appearances on Buffy and Angel until it is destroyed in an explosion in Season Five of Angel, whereupon he gets a new one that looks exactly like the old one ("The Girl in Question"). At some point post-1977, Billy Idol allegedly "stole" Spike's look and made it famous as his own (as revealed in Season Seven's "Sleeper"; see "Appearance" below); Spike's thoughts on this are unrecorded. Inasmuch as Buffy knew of the "theft" as of "Sleeper," Spike presumably shared the detail with her in an undepicted moment.

text: Spike's flashback appearances, in chronological order, include:

text:
Lies My Parents Told Me 2nd flashback: In 1880 England, William, pre-Spike, tends to his ailing mother Anne.
Fool for Love 1st flashback / Darla 3rd flashback: In 1880, William is rejected by Cecily and sired by Drusilla, with whom he immediately falls in love.
Lies My Parents Told Me 3rd and 4th flashbacks: In 1880, William sires his mother Anne, who, as a vampire, turns against him, forcing him to destroy her.
Destiny series of flashbacks: In 1880, Drusilla introduces William to her sire Angelus. Although the two become fast friends, they later clash when William discovers Angelus making love with Drusilla. Angelus, informing William that when one is a vampire "you can take what you want, have what you want, but nothing is yours," fights William for the first time.
"Fool for Love" 2nd flashback: Months after being sired, William, now called Spike, has through acts of public mayhem forced Angelus' vampire group (himself, Spike, Drusilla, and Angelus' sire/paramour Darla) to flee London; Spike first learns of the existence of the Vampire Slayer.
The Girl in Question 1st flashback: In 1894, Spike and Angelus are imprisoned by the mysterious Immortal, who seduces Drusilla and Darla in their absence.
Darla 4th flashback: In 1898 Romania, Spike and Drusilla, under Darla's orders, attack the Kalderash tribe who ensouled Angelus, later called Angel. Following this incident, Angel parts company with the group, and the other three vampires resume their travels without him.
"Fool for Love" 3rd flashback / Darla 5th flashback: In 1900 China, Spike kills the Chinese Vampire Slayer. Angel, still ensouled, briefly reunites with the group; when Spike and Drusilla, neither of whom seem aware that Angel is ensouled, boast of Spike's deed, Angel pretends to be impressed but is actually disgusted. Darla ultimately rejects Angel because he can no longer bring himself to kill innocents, and Angel again leaves the group. Precisely what Spike and Drusilla make of these developments between their "elders" is unrevealed. At some point over the next few decades, Spike and Drusilla part company with Darla, and Spike's reputation for bloodshed and chaos eventually rivals even that of Angelus.
Why We Fight series of flashbacks: In 1943, Spike, temporarily adventuring without Drusilla, and two other vampires are abducted by Nazi agents onto a Nazi sub. Angel, working for the US government, helps Spike seize control of the sub, and the two escape and then part ways. As far as is known, this is Spike and Angel's last meeting prior to the events of School Hard in 1998.
The Girl in Question 2nd flashback: Spike and Drusilla visit Italy.
Lies My Parents Told Me 1st flashback: In 1977 New York, Spike fights Vampire Slayer Nikki Wood while her young son Robin watches from a hiding place.
"Fool for Love" 4th flashback: In 1977 New York, Spike again fights Nikki Wood, killing her. These are Spike's last depicted activities preceding his arrival in Sunnydale, California.

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text: Sunnydale[edit]

text: Spike first arrives in Sunnydale in the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, in the episode "School Hard", accompanied by Drusilla.[7] Spike and Dru were modeled on Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen; punk, "badass" vampires to contrast sharply with the more ceremonial tradition of the Master and the Order of Aurelius from Season One.[12] Spike is in fact a fan of Sid Vicious' band The Sex Pistols and punk band The Ramones. In the final scene of the episode "Lovers Walk", he can be seen singing to a cover of "My Way" by Gary Oldman, who portrayed Vicious in the film Sid and Nancy.[13] Spike's first act in Sunnydale is to attack Buffy and a large group of people at her school, making his first appearance the deadliest of any of Buffy's "Big Bads", as he very nearly kills Buffy, but Buffy's mother distracts Spike long enough for Buffy to recover. Throughout Season Two, Spike and Dru are the canon's most prominent example of affection between vampires, displaying the humanity and intricacies of vampire relationships. Spike was initially conceived as a disposable villain to be killed off, but proved so popular with fans that Joss Whedon decided to merely injure him instead,[12] in the episode "What's My Line, Part Two", in which Spike is crushed by a collapsing pipe organ and left paralyzed.[14] (Later it is revealed that he has healed but chosen to stay in the wheelchair to deceive Angel whom he intended to betray.)

text: Spike and Drusilla are major enemies of Buffy for much of the second season. They arrive shortly after Drusilla is seriously weakened by an angry mob in Prague, as recounted in the canon comic book The Problem with Vampires. Spike is a devoted caretaker to Drusilla in her weakened condition, and initially hopes the Hellmouth's energy can help restore her strength. He reunites with Angel and seems genuinely pleased to see him, but is disgusted to find that Angel has a soul (whether or not Spike in fact knew that Angel's acquisition of a soul is why he left the group nearly a century before has never been made clear) and is in love with the current Slayer, Buffy Summers.[7] When Angel loses his soul and rejoins Spike and Dru, Spike's initial celebration soon turns to resentment when Angelus starts pursuing Drusilla as a lover and taunting him. Spike decides to ally himself with Buffy against Angelus; as he explains to Buffy, in addition to wanting Drusilla back, he also wants to "save the world":[15]

text:
“

"We like to talk big, vampires do. I'm going to destroy the world. That's just tough guy talk. Strutting around with your friends over a pint of blood. The truth is, I like this world. You've got – the dog racing, Manchester United, and you've got people: billions of people walking around like Happy Meals with legs. It's all right here. But then someone comes along with a vision, with a real passion for destruction. Angel could pull it off. Goodbye Piccadilly, farewell Leicester bloody Square." – Spike ("Becoming, Part Two").

”

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text: Spike reappears in the Season Three episode "Lovers Walk", in a drunken depression after Drusilla, offended by his alliance with Buffy, dumps him for a Chaos demon. He kidnaps Willow and Xander, and forces Willow to conduct a love spell for him to make Drusilla love him again, even coercing Buffy and Angel to help him in exchange for the safe return of their friends. The excitement of a brawl with the Mayor's vampires helps him see that Drusilla left him because he had begun to go soft; he resolves to win her back by torturing her until she likes him again, and tells Buffy where to find Willow and Xander. He also tells Buffy and Angel that they can never be friends because of their love for one another.[13] This insight foreshadows Spike's later role as the "truth-seer" of the group.

text: Spike returns to Sunnydale alone in Season Four, in the episode "The Harsh Light of Day", briefly living with Harmony Kendall, a shallow former classmate of Buffy, now a vampire.[16] He is in Sunnydale to look for the Gem of Amarra, a ring which makes a vampire effectively invulnerable. He finds it and attacks Buffy in daylight, but she wrests the ring from his finger and sends it to Angel. Spike goes to Los Angeles, and hires a vampire named Marcus to torture Angel in order to get the ring, but Marcus takes the ring himself and Angel finally destroys it.

text: After being captured by The Initiative and implanted with a cerebral microchip which punishes him with debilitating pain whenever he harms or attempts to harm any non-demon life forms, Spike turns to the Scooby Gang for protection, bartering his knowledge of the Initiative. (Though he still spars with Buffy, provided he has no real intent on harming her) His inability to bite is comically compared to impotence, much to Spike's constant humiliation;[17] in "Doomed", he attempts to commit suicide by staking himself at Xander's house, but is stopped by Willow and Xander. Occasionally helping the Scooby Gang by providing them with information and/or combat assistance in exchange for cash[18] or for the joy of fighting, but having no qualms about betraying them to such enemies as Faith[19] and Adam.[20] In Season Four, Spike was introduced to fill the antagonistic role that Cordelia had in seasons One to Three; as Joss Whedon explains on the DVD featurette, "All of our characters got to the point where they were loving and hugging, and it was sort of like, where's Cordelia?"[21] Spike appeared in every episode thereafter with the exception of "The Body".

text: In Season Five, after some erotic dreams, Spike becomes aware to his horror that he has fallen in love with Buffy.[22] He becomes a more active participant in the Scooby Gang, jumping into several of Buffy's fights to provide assistance, whether she wants it or not. When Buffy rejects his advances, Spike attempts to prove his love by kidnapping her so that she can witness him killing Drusilla for her, to little avail; in her disgust, Buffy un-invites him from her house (something she had not bothered to do in almost three years since their alliance against Angelus) and alienates him from the group.[23]

text: Spike then has Warren Mears make a robot in Buffy's likeness, programmed to love and obey him. Though Buffy is disgusted by this, her hostility towards him fades considerably when she learns that Spike refused, even under intense torture, to reveal the identity of The Key to Glory, nearly laying down his life to protect Buffy's sister Dawn. Buffy is moved by this unexpected loyalty and kisses him, saying she will not forget what he has done.[24] In the days and hours leading up to the final showdown with Glory, Spike fights by Buffy's side, earning her trust and a re-invitation to her house. Spike displays unabashed grief after Buffy dies in the showdown with Glory,[25] Spike honors her memory by remaining loyal to the Scoobies, fighting at their side and serving the role of baby-sitter / older brother / protector to Dawn, helping Willow and Tara to raise her in Buffy's absence.

text: After Buffy is resurrected at the beginning of Season Six, she is despondent and detached from her friends. During this time, her relationship to Spike deepens and she is able to talk to him about things she feels she cannot share with the Scooby Gang. She gets drunk with Spike, and calls him "a neutered vampire who cheats at kitten poker." After a demon's spell makes them express their emotions in song, and Buffy sings "I want the fire back",[26] Buffy and Spike begin a physical relationship, consummated two episodes later.[27] The relationship is frequently violent, with Buffy most often initiating both the violence and the sex between them; the violence is made all the easier when Spike finds that (as a side effect of Willow's resurrection spell) his chip now does not stop him from harming Buffy. Buffy threatens to kill Spike if he ever tells anyone about their relationship. Both are unsatisfied; Buffy is ashamed of her dark desires, while Spike obsessively craves the love, trust, and affection that she is unwilling to give. In "As You Were", Buffy tells Spike she is using him and ends their relationship.[28] Believing he still has a chance with Buffy after seeing her reactions of jealousy and hurt when he has a drunk sexual encounter with Anya, Spike corners her and makes aggressive sexual advances. When she refuses him, he grows desperate and unsuccessfully tries to rape her.[29] He is at once horrified by his own actions and intentions, while also somewhat remiss that he did not go through with the rape, since he is still essentially a demon and has had no problem committing such acts in the past. This is seen in his reactions to reliving the memory of the event while discussing his subsequent mood with Clem, who has come by with hot wings to hang out. Spike heads to a remote area of Africa, where he seeks out a legendary demon shaman and undergoes the Demon Trials, a series of grueling physical challenges. Proving his worthiness by surviving the trials, Spike earns his soul back.[30]

text: In Season Seven, a re-ensouled Spike must cope with the guilt of his past actions and try to win back Buffy's trust. But under influence of the First Evil's hypnotic trigger, Spike unknowingly starts killing again. Upon discovering what he has done, he begs Buffy to stake him, but she refuses and takes him into her house, telling him she has seen him change.[31] Buffy guards and cares for Spike throughout his recovery, telling Spike she believes in him,[32] a statement which later sustains him throughout his imprisonment and torture at the hands of the First.[33] When Spike's chip begins to malfunction, causing him intense pain and threatening to kill him, Buffy trusts him enough to order the Initiative operatives to remove it from his head.[34] When Nikki Wood's son Robin tries to kill Spike, he unwittingly frees Spike from his hypnotic trigger: the song "Early One Morning", a favorite of his mother, which evokes Spike's traumatic memories of his mother's abusive behavior toward him after she turned; after Spike is able to address these issues, he realizes his mother had always loved him, knowledge which frees him from the First's control.[6]

text: Later in the season, Spike and Buffy achieve an emotional closeness; he alone stays loyal to her when the Scoobies and Potentials mutiny against her, and his words and encouragement give a depressed Buffy the strength to continue fighting. They spend three nights together, one of which Spike describes as the best night of his life, just holding her.[35] It is unclear whether they resume their sexual intimacy during the third night; creator Joss Whedon says on the DVD commentary for "Chosen" that he intentionally left it to the viewers to decide how they felt the relationship progressed, though Whedon had earlier stated on the commentary he personally felt having them resume a sexual relationship would send the wrong message. In the final battle inside the Hellmouth, Spike, wearing a mystical amulet, sacrifices himself to destroy the Turok-Han and close the Hellmouth. He is slowly incinerated in the process, but not before Buffy tells him "I love you." He replies, "No, you don't; but thanks for saying it."[36] Even as he burns and crumbles to dust, Spike laughs and revels in the destruction around him and the burning presence of his soul, glad to be able to see the fight to its end. In dying to save the world, he becomes a Champion.[37]

text:
“

"Now, you listen to me. I've been alive a bit longer than you. And dead a lot longer than that. I've seen things you couldn't imagine – done things I'd prefer you didn't. I don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood. Which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. I've made a lot of mistakes. A lot of wrong bloody calls. A hundred plus years and there's only one thing I've ever been sure of. You." – Spike ("Touched").

”

text: Los Angeles[edit]

text: Spike had previously appeared in the season 1 episode of Angel "In the Dark", Spike goes to Los Angeles at the same time as Oz arrives to give Angel the Gem of Amarra, Spike's objective was to get the ring and kill Angel. Oz gives Angel the ring who then hides it in the sewer, just as he is about to leave for another case he is ambushed by Spike who hits him with a wooden plank, Angel defeats Spike but Spike warns him that he will get the ring one way or another. Angel takes precaution and goes on a manhunt for Spike, Angel finally finds him, chases him through the alley, and corners him only to fall into Spike's trap. Spike captures Angel and hires a vampire named Marcus to torture Angel until he tells him where the ring is. After a while Spike gets bored of waiting so he goes to Angel's apartment to find the ring and leaving Marcus to torture Angel, he gets to the apartment only to find Cordelia and Doyle aiming at him with weapons and demanding to know where Angel is. Spike reveals Angel's location and tells them that the only way he will release Angel is if they find him the ring. Cordelia and Doyle find the ring in the sewer and head straight to Spike. When they arrive at the location they find out that Spike had lied about releasing Angel. Taking precautions however, they then throw the ring away and just as Spike was about to retrieve it, Oz bursts through the wall in his van and rescues Angel. Spike looks for the ring but finds out that Marcus took it. Spike begins smashing Marcus's things and shouting about how he is going to work alone from now on until a hole that was in the ceiling lets sunlight in and sets the back of his hair on fire.

text: Despite his apparent death at the end of Buffy's final season, Spike returns in the fifth and final season of the spin-off series Angel. Resurrected by the amulet in the Los Angeles branch of supernatural law firm Wolfram & Hart, he spends seven episodes as an incorporeal being akin to a ghost; he starts to understand being one when he battles "the Reaper" Matthias Pavayne.[38] During this time he realizes he is being slowly pulled into hell. Later he becomes corporeal, due to a mysterious gift that arrives at the office of Wolfram and Hart. Soon afterward he is kidnapped by the psychotic Slayer Dana, who believes he was responsible for kidnapping and torturing her as a child.[39] After this, Spike takes on Angel to prove which one of them is the Champion spoken of in the Shanshu Prophecy. Spike defeats Angel, but the prophecy remains ambiguous (the Cup of Torment is revealed as a fake containing Mountain Dew).[8] Manipulated by Lindsey McDonald into "helping the helpless", Spike becomes a sort of rival to Angel; resembling the heroic Champion Angel was in earlier seasons before becoming disillusioned and corrupted by the bureaucracy of Wolfram & Hart.[40] Cordelia comments on this strange turn of events after coming out of her coma in "You're Welcome", exclaiming to Angel, "Okay, Spike's a hero, and you're CEO of Hell, Incorporated. What freaking bizarro world did I wake up in?"[41]

text: When Fred is killed by Illyria,[42] Spike mourns her death and decides to join Team Angel in her honor.[43] Upon learning that Buffy is now dating The Immortal, Spike and Angel travel to Rome on the pretext of business but spend most of the time there trying to find Buffy. In the end, they fail to catch up with her. (The blonde glimpsed in Rome is later revealed to be a decoy Buffy, set up by Andrew Wells, who had researched the history between Angel, Spike and The Immortal, and thought the idea would be "hilarious".)[9] During the final episodes of Angel, Spike is the first to vote for Angel's plan to wound the Senior Partners by massacring the Circle of the Black Thorn. He then spends what might be his last hours on Earth returning to his mortal roots as a frustrated poet, triumphantly knocking them dead (figuratively) in an open mic poetry slam at a bar. After single-handedly (literally, he held the baby in one hand and a sword in the other) rescuing an infant and destroying the Fell Brethren, Spike joins Angel, Illyria, and a badly wounded Charles Gunn in the alley behind the Hyperion as the series draws to an end, preparing to incur the apocalyptic wrath of the Senior Partners, as a way of going out in a blaze of glory that will probably cost their lives.

text: Literature[edit]

text: Spike appears significantly in a number of canonical Expanded Universe literature concurrent with and subsequent to the television series, including both Buffy and Angel comic books. Many of these novels and comic books concern Spike's backstory in the periods between the events shown in flashbacks in the television series. From 2007, both Dark Horse Comics and IDW Publishing began telling canonical continuations of Buffy and Angel, respectively. Marsters himself wrote for the miniseries Spike & Dru in 2000. The collection also featured the Christopher Golden stories "The Queen of Hearts", "All's Fair", "Paint the Town Red" and "Who Made Who?", set in or around episodes of Buffy in Seasons Two and Four; "Who Made Who" is set during the Buffy episode "Lovers Walk" and depicts the disintegration of his relationship with Drusilla when they were together in Brazil. After Buffy finished in 2003, Spike appeared in a comic story from the canonical Tales of the Vampires series. Written by series writer Drew Goddard, "The Problem with Vampires" establishes his adventures in Prague prior to his introduction Buffy episode "School Hard". Christopher Golden's 2000 novel Spike and Dru: Pretty Maids All in a Row depicts Spike killing a Slayer named Sophie in the 1940s, contradicting the two Slayers whom Spike is later established to have killed; the second Slayer Spike killed was established as New Yorker Nikki Wood. The short story "Voodoo Lounge" from the collection Tales of the Slayer is a sequel to this novel. Golden's 2006 novel, Blackout, is truer to the series' chronology by depicting Spike's fatal encounter with Slayer Nikki Wood in 1977. Diana G. Gallagher's 2005 novel Spark and Burn depicts the struggling early-Season Seven Spike remembering an account of his life, amounting to a chronological character history of Spike's life from the 19th century to the time of the framing device.

text: Most Spike-centric stories, however, have been published subsequent to Angel's finale episode. The 2005 IDW comic book Spike: Old Times, by Peter David, depicts Spike's encounter with the vengeance demon Halfrek, explaining his recognition of her in Buffy episode "Older and Far Away", and clarifying that she was in fact his beloved Cecily. Mutant Enemy approved the story, even though IDW did not have rights to a Buffy-only character like Halfrek, because of her importance to Spike's backstory, on the condition that the story's timing was deliberately ambiguous.[45] Following Angel's cancellation, Spike immediately appeared in the Angel miniseries Spike vs. Dracula by Peter David, a sequel to the Buffy episode "Buffy vs. Dracula" and expanding on the characters' century-old rivalry established in that episode. Scott Tipton's 2006 comic Spike: Old Wounds is detective fiction set during Season Five, and also features allusions to Spike's activities in the late 1940s. Tipton's Spike: Lost and Found in 2006 is a Season Five story that acts as a sequel to the 1999 Buffy/Angel crossover episodes "The Harsh Light of Day" and "In the Dark", featuring the immortality-bestowing Gem of Amarra in 2005 Los Angeles. Lastly, writer Brian Lynch teamed up with Franco Urru to produce the story arc Spike: Asylum (2006–07), depicting Spike's stay in a supernatural medical facility. Although originally of the same ambiguous relationship to canon, the characters it introduced would reappear in the canonical Angel comic books to come later. Whedon appreciated Lynch's writing of Spike in Asylum so much that he commissioned him to co-write the canonical continuation of the series, Angel: After the Fall, in 2007.[46] Lynch and Urru also penned Spike: Shadow Puppets, featuring Spike and Lorne doing battle with the muppet demons of Angel episode "Smile Time" in Japan. In the explicitly canonical Whedon stories of 2007, Spike and Angel first appear in a joint cameo in Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight (Dark Horse) as part of Buffy's sexual fantasies.[47][48] In the Dark Horse Presents #24 Season Eight tie-in, "Always Darkest", Spike and Angel appear (again in a dream sequence) at Buffy's side when she is fighting Caleb, but to her dismay the two start flirting with and kissing one another.[49] Spike appears in Season Eight properly at the conclusion of the "Twilight" story arc. Lynch's Spike series features some collaboration with Whedon to connect the IDW and Dark Horse series' continuities.[50] IDW had planned to launch the series as a bona fide ongoing series, and as such it establishes a support cast for Spike suited to his position headlining the title.[51] The transfer of Angel rights from IDW to Dark Horse necessitated that it end instead as an 8-issue miniseries.[52]

text: In IDW's Angel: After the Fall, Spike does not appear until the second issue, written by Brian Lynch with art by Franco Urru (the creative team of Spike: Asylum and Spike: Shadow Puppets) with plotting and "executive production" by Whedon himself. In Angel: After the Fall, Spike has adjusted to Los Angeles' new status as a literal hell on Earth; he and Illyria both serve together as the Demon Lords of Beverly Hills, living in the Playboy Mansion after the death of Hugh Hefner and served by a harem of human and demon females known collectively as the "Spikettes." How Spike and Illyria got to be Lords of Los Angeles is detailed in the Spike: After the Fall (2008) miniseries, which also introduces a human friend for Spike in Jeremy Johns. In their new capacity, Spike and Illyria secretly rescue humans and benevolent demons, evacuating them into the care of Connor, Nina Ash, and Gwen Raiden. Spike rallies alongside Angel against the other demon Lords. When vampire Gunn causes Illyria to revert to her monster form, memories of Fred from Spike and Wesley are transplanted into her to restore her humanity. After the Senior Partners revert time to before the Fall, Spike begins a loosely affiliated relationship with the reformed Angel Investigations company, collaborating with Angel and his associates while maintaining independence. Spike continues to appear in the ongoing Angel spin-off series by IDW, under the pens of Kelley Armstrong, Bill Willingham and others. As part of its After the Fall franchise, IDW also published Bill Williams' miniseries, Spike: The Devil You Know (2010), which follows Spike's journey from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, where he acquires a spaceship and a crew of alien bugs after learning from Wolfram & Hart of a prophecy concerning the impending apocalypse (featured in Buffy) which has driven them to abandon this dimension.

text: Spike's IDW series feeds into the "Twilight" and "Last Gleaming" arcs of Buffy Season Eight, concluding that series in 2011. In Season Eight, Spike and his crew come to Buffy's aid to help prevent the end of the universe. Due to his own research into the prophecies concerning this apocalypse, Spike is able to lead Buffy and friends to the site of the final showdown with Twilight. When Buffy's decision sees the world lose its magic, Spike is the only one to be emphatically supportive of the decision she had to make. In the follow-up series Season Nine (2011–2013), Spike bases his ship in San Francisco to be near Buffy, but eventually leaves due to the complicatedness of their relationship, setting up the miniseries Spike: A Dark Place (2012), which follows Spike and his insectoid crew aboard his spaceship. Dark Horse also gives the Spike title a new stylised logo, distinct from the Angel-typeface logo used prior. The arc serves to divest Spike of the ship and crew, and sets up his 2013 crossover stint in Angel & Faith ahead of an eventual return to the main Buffy series.[53] In issues of Angel & Faith, Spike helps Angel defeat a demon in possession of Giles' soul, but leaves London where they are based without hesitation when he learns that Dawn is gravely unwell back in San Francisco. He returns to San Francisco to provide comfort to Dawn who is rapidly fading away without magic in the world to sustain her form. However, his memories of her start to quickly fade and recordings he makes of himself talking about her turn to static. Spike appears unconcerned he missed the chance to talk to Buffy who, along with Willow and Xander, has gone to find magic to save Dawn at the Deeper Well in England. When nobody can remember the name of Buffy's sister, he phones her boyfriend Xander, and also warns him that the rogue Slayer Simone Doffler has been seeking a way to become the ultimate vampire. When the others return and Dawn is restored Buffy thanks him for staying with her sister, Spike says all that matters to him is that Dawn is safe again. Spike continues to appear in Season Ten, in which he and Buffy finally resume their relationship, tell each other they love each other and kiss.

text: Characterization[edit]

text: Personality[edit]

text: Spike is seen as something of a paradox amongst vampires in the series, and frequently challenges vampire conventions and limitations. As a soulless vampire, he exhibits quite a few human traits such as love, loyalty, and aesthetic appreciation. As an ensouled vampire, Spike's need for violence remains unapologetically intact. Spike's actions are motivated by love in all of its incarnations (love of objects, love of life, love of a specific person). Drusilla does, however, make it seem that all vampires are capable of exhibiting human emotions (such as love) when she says to Buffy, "We can love quite well. Though not always wisely."[23]

text: Throughout the Buffy series, Spike's character changes and develops the most out of them all. He begins as "evil" and obsessed with Drusilla, then becomes a depressed drunk after Drusilla leaves him for a Chaos demon because he is not "demon enough" for her anymore. He then heard about the "Gem of Amara," a gemstone that is rumored to give vampires the ability to walk in the sun; it was called a kind of holy grail for the vampires because it was only assumed to be real. Spike set his sights on finding it and ended up locating it in Sunnydale. It was taken away from him by an angry Buffy who subsequently gave it to Angel in Los Angeles. Spike was then captured by The Initiative and was going to be used as a government science experiment. His next character development and change was after he escaped the Initiative, realized he could not harm any human being because of the chip they put in his brain, and saw his only option as going to Buffy and the Scooby Gang for help. Their relationship then grew slowly from a hostile tolerance to a confusing romantic relationship to a mutual respect and understanding. Spike had setbacks along the way; there were times when he reverted to his former "evil" self and tried to hurt Buffy or the Scoobies. But there were also times when he showed astounding amounts of human emotion and responsibility for a supposedly "evil," soulless creature.

text: Spike is also rare among vampires because he does not fear Slayers; he seeks them out and has killed two by the time he arrives in Sunnydale. He is proud of this accomplishment despite the fact that his victories had more to do with the Slayers' state of mind than a special prowess on his part (or "luck," as he reveals in Buffy episode Fool for Love). Spike admits this to an inquiring Buffy in the season 5 episode Fool for Love, and the impact of his revelation has probably not been completely felt as of the completion of season 8.

text: Spike is intelligent, insightful and a skilled analyst. His sense of humor is dry and sarcastic, and he carries himself with swagger.

text: Spike has a habit of pithy remarks and glib insults, even toward the few he does not view as antagonists. Among his favorite targets are Angel, Xander, Giles, and (to a lesser extent) Buffy. Joss Whedon credits this antipathy as what convinced him in the episode "Lovers Walk" to bring Spike back as a cast regular. As James Marsters put it, "I was supposed to be the one who stood at the side and said, 'Buffy, you're stupid, and we're all gonna die'."[21]

text: Spike often nicknames people, both as insults and as terms of endearment; for example, he calls Dawn "Little Bit" or "the Niblet". Spike also retains something of his literary intellect from his human side, routinely referencing poetry, songs, and literature; on occasion he even waxes poetic on the nature of love, life, and unlife as being driven by blood, reasoning that blood is more powerful than any supernatural force because it is what separates the living from the dead.[13][25]

text: Spike often treats his vulnerability to the sun as simply an annoying inconvenience. He drives in broad daylight in vehicles with blacked-out windows, and on several occasions travels outside during the day using a blanket for cover. Indeed, he has a remarkably stronger resistance to sunlight than most all other vampires seen in the series except Angel; their elevated ability to endure the sun should not be confused with total immunity, however.

text: Appearance[edit]

text: Spike has a punk look which strongly resembles English rock musician Billy Idol; humorously, Buffy claims that Billy Idol in fact stole his look from Spike. His hair is peroxide blond for the duration of his time on Buffy and Angel, although in flashbacks it can be seen in its natural medium brown state as well as dyed black.[10] His nails are often painted black.

text:
“

Bouncer: [When asked if he has seen Spike] "Yeah, yeah, I know the guy. Billy Idol wannabe?"
Buffy: "Actually, Billy Idol stole his look from-- never mind."[31]

”

text: A Y-shaped scar on Marsters's left eyebrow, received during a mugging,[54] was worked into the show; make-up artist Todd McIntosh decided to shave out his eyebrow in order to make it more prominent. He also included the scar on Spike's "vamp face" prosthesis, albeit slightly altered as though the skin has stretched.[55] In Spike's first appearances the wound still looks fresh, but it gradually fades until, in Angel season 5, it is barely visible. A flashback in "Fool for Love" reveals that Spike received the scar from the sword of the first Slayer he killed in 1900.[5]

text: Spike usually wears long black leather coats, including one that he took from a Nazi officer[10] and another that he took as a trophy from Nikki Wood, the second Slayer he killed.[5] He wore the Slayer's black duster for over twenty-five years. When the coat was destroyed by a bomb from the Immortal in Italy, Spike heartbrokenly declared it to be irreplaceable; but the Italian branch of Wolfram & Hart quickly supplied him with a whole wardrobe of new ones, nearly identical, which he happily began wearing.[9] His trademark look includes the leather duster, a black T-shirt or v-neck shirt and black denim pants, usually with heavy boots or Doc Martens. He also wore a red long-sleeved shirt fairly often, particularly during the earlier seasons of Buffy, and a bright blue shirt early in Season 6 & 7. He explained that the shirt was supposed to show Buffy that he had changed and give him confidence (because the First was messing with his head and he did not want Buffy to think he was still evil or crazy). But later, he returned to his trademark look, commenting that he was back.

text: Powers and abilities[edit]

text: In addition to possessing the common powers and weaknesses of vampires, Spike's age and experience makes him a highly effective, skilled, and versatile fighter in both armed and unarmed combat. For example, he is able to briefly overcome Illyria during a testing of her abilities prior to her powers being greatly reduced by Wesley. Illyria criticizes his (and others') ability to adapt, calling it "compromise."[56] He is able to withstand excessive amounts of pain for extended periods of time, particularly when properly motivated, as seen in the episodes "Intervention"[24] and "Showtime".[57] While not as skilled or as sadistic as Angelus, Spike also proves himself to be effective at torture, noting he had gained "screams, various fluids, and a name" from Doctor Sparrow.[43] Much like Angel, he is highly proficient in various forms of martial arts, and his typical fighting style blends karate, kung fu, and others.

text: Spike often displays insight and skills in perception and observation, especially with regard to relationships and personalities, so long as the relationship in question does not concern him personally. This ability allows him to wield powerful psychological weapons as easily and effectively as physical ones. For example, when he wants to create disharmony among the Scoobies, Spike divides-and-conquers with "The Yoko Factor", exploiting tensions that exist under the surface to alienate Buffy and her friends against each other.[20] Spike's skills of analysis allowed him to realize Willow was barely holding it together after Oz's departure even though Giles and Buffy thought she was doing better, to be the first to see through Tara's abusive and controlling family,[58] forced Buffy and Angel to admit that they were more than "just friends"[13] and identify when and why some relationships, such as between Buffy and Riley, are not meant to last, masterfully feeding Riley's insecurities in an effort to sabotage his relationship with Buffy, so Spike can pursue her.

text: His analytical skills and intuitive insight also help him in battle from time to time, helping him to defeat, or hold his own against, very formidable adversaries. For example, he explains to Buffy he was able to defeat two Slayers because he sensed and exploited their secret desires to be free of their burden.[5] In "Time Bomb", he identifies Illyria's fighting style as a Tae Kwon Do/Brazilian Capoeira / Ninjitsu hybrid.

text: While many vampires cling to the mannerisms and speech patterns prevalent at the time they were sired, Spike has been shown to easily adjust to changing fashions and styles over the decades and displays an impressive knowledge of both British and American popular culture, demonstrating another aspect of his potential for analysis and adaptability.

text: Although capable of developing sound battle strategies, Spike (particularly in the days before receiving his chip and being re-ensouled) often loses patience with anything more complicated than outright attack, as mentioned in the episode "In the Dark".

text:
“

Spike: I had a plan.
Angel: You, a plan?
Spike: Yeah, a good plan. Smart. Carefully laid out. But I got bored.

”

text: He is also impatient to fight the Slayer upon his initial arrival in Sunnydale; the attack is supposed to coincide with the Night of St. Vigeous (when a vampire's natural abilities are enhanced), but he "couldn't wait" to go after the Slayer and recklessly leads a mass assault against Buffy at Sunnydale High, which fails and results in the deaths of many Aurelian vampires. However, Spike did exercise patience throughout the later half of Buffy Season Two, when he used a wheelchair for several months after a brutal battle with the Scoobies in the episode What's My Line left him paraplegic. Feigning weakness, he endured torturous weeks watching Angelus sexually pursue Dru as he waited for the right time to strike against his enemy.

text: Spike's "vampire constitution" provides him with an extremely high tolerance for alcohol (which he regularly consumes in copious quantities). His experience in crime gives him skill at picking locks, hotwiring cars and picking pockets. He is also capable of easily operating various vehicles, such as various cars, a Yamaha XJR400 motorcycle ("Bargaining"), and a Winnebago ("Spiral"). He has also been shown using video game systems and a computer, treating injuries, and playing poker and pool. Spike is also seen speaking/understanding Latin, Luganda (a language of Uganda, where he meets the demon shaman), and the language of Fyarl demons, two of whom he once employed as muscle during his pre-Sunnydale days. He is also shown to be capable of recognizing literature; in the last episode of season five, he paraphrases a line from the St. Crispin's Day Speech while in conversation with Giles after Buffy tells them her plan of attack on Glory.

text: When Spike was transformed into a ghost-like intangible state following the destruction of Sunnydale and the Hellmouth and his subsequent materialization at Wolfram & Hart, he was capable of walking through solid objects. He was initially unable to make contact with objects around him until he learned how to focus his abilities through desire, allowing him to make brief contact with people and things if he concentrated enough. This ability was relatively useless in a fight; he was unable to pick up a wooden bar to hit the demon Tezcatcatl in "The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco", and required a few moments to properly punch a cyborg strangling Gunn in "Lineage". Naturally, he lost these capabilities when he was recorporealized by Lindsey.

text: Unproduced spin-off movie[edit]

text: In 2004, Joss Whedon set plans for a Spike movie. The film, if ever greenlit, would star James Marsters, Alyson Hannigan and Amy Acker. At a 2006 convention, Acker stated the film was not going ahead due to money issues.[59][60]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Spike was placed first in SFX magazine's "Top 50 Vampires" on television and movies list.[61] The same list featured rival Angel in the third place. Spike was described as an "antihero in the true sense of the word, Spike is morally ambiguous and ready to fight pretty much anyone, for fun. But underneath it all, he loves deeply and earnestly in a way that remains achingly human. Although, ironically, his personality remains pretty much the same, whether he has a soul or not – in stark (and more entertaining) contrast to Angel." Other Buffyverse vampires to appear on the list included Drusilla (at 10th place), Darla (at 25th place), Vampire Willow (at 32nd place), Harmony Kendall (at 31st place), and the Master (at 39th place).

text: Spike is also featured in Forbes magazine's "Hollywood's Most Powerful Vampires" list along with Angel.[62]

text: For this role James Marsters won Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor in a TV Series (in 2000, 2003) and was nominated for this award in 1999, 2001, 2002, 2004.

text: In 1999, Spike won a TV Guide Award for "Scariest Villain".[63]

text: In 2017 Spike made into the list of "25 Villains We Love to Hate from the last 25 years" for the 25th anniversary of Syfy.[64]


document_title: The Muppet Movie

question_text: what kind of car does fozzie bear drive

question_tokens: what kind of car does fozzie bear drive

text: The Muppet Movie

text: Plot

text: The Muppets have gathered in a theatre, in a Hollywood film studio, to screen their new biographical film, The Muppet Movie.

text: In the film-within-a-film, Kermit the Frog enjoys a relaxing afternoon in a Florida swamp, strumming his banjo and singing "The Rainbow Connection", when he is approached by Bernie (Dom DeLuise), a Hollywood talent agent who encourages Kermit to pursue a career in show business. Inspired by the idea of "making millions of people happy", Kermit sets off on a cross-country trip to Los Angeles, but is soon pursued by entrepreneur Doc Hopper (Charles Durning) and his shy assistant Max (Austin Pendleton) in an attempt to convince Kermit to be the new spokesman of Hopper's struggling French-fried frog legs restaurant franchise, to Kermit's horror. As Kermit continuously declines his offers, Hopper resorts to increasingly vicious means of persuasion.

text: Meeting Fozzie Bear, who works as a hapless comedian in the El Sleezo Cafe, Kermit invites Fozzie to accompany him. The two set out in a 1951 Studebaker loaned to Fozzie by his hibernating uncle. The duo’s journey includes misadventures which introduce them to a variety of eccentric human and Muppet characters, including Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem and their manager Scooter, who receives a copy of the script from the pair (one of a number of self-references) at an old Presbyterian church; Gonzo, who works as a plumber, and his girlfriend Camilla the Chicken; Sweetums, who runs after them after they mistakenly think that he has turned them down at a used car lot; and the immediately love-stricken Miss Piggy at a fair.

text: While Kermit and Miss Piggy form a relationship over dinner that night, Doc Hopper and Max kidnap Miss Piggy and use her as bait to lure Kermit into a trap. Using an electronic cerebrectomy device, scientist Professor Krassman (Mel Brooks) decides to brainwash Kermit in an attempt to force Kermit to perform in Doc’s commercials until an infuriated Miss Piggy knocks out Doc Hopper's henchmen and causes the scientist to be brainwashed by his own device. After receiving a job offer, however, she promptly abandons a devastated Kermit.

text: After an incident in the theater where the projector briefly breaks down, with film tangled around the Swedish Chef, who was the projectionist, which causes Animal (a member of the Electric Mayhem) to throw a wild temper tantrum and rip off a chunk of his own seat cushion, the film starts up again. Having been joined by Rowlf the Dog and reunited with Miss Piggy, the Muppets continue their journey to Hollywood. Fozzie's 1946 Ford Woodie station wagon trade-in breaks down in the New Mexico desert. During a campfire that night, the group sadly considers that they may miss the audition the next day, and Kermit wanders off, ashamed of himself for seemingly bringing his friends on a fruitless journey. Upon consulting a more optimistic vision of himself, Kermit remembers that it was not just his friends' belief in the dream that brought them this far, but also his own faith in himself. Reinvigorated, he returns to camp to find that the Electric Mayhem and Scooter have read the script in advance, and arrived to help them the rest of the way.

text: Just as it seems they are finally on their way, the group is warned by Max that Doc Hopper has hired an assassin named Snake Walker to kill Kermit. Kermit decides he will not be hunted down by a bully any longer and proposes a Western-style showdown in a nearby ghost town occupied by Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker, who invent materials that have yet to be tested. While confronting Hopper, Kermit explains his motivations, attempting to appeal to Hopper’s own hopes and dreams, but Hopper is unmoved and orders his henchmen to kill him and all his friends. They are saved only when one of Dr. Bunsen's inventions, "insta-grow" pills, temporarily turns Animal into a giant, causing Hopper and his men to flee while Max turns around, laughs gleefully and waves his hat at the Muppets.

text: The Muppets proceed to Hollywood, and after getting by his secretary, Miss Tracy (Cloris Leachman), via causing her allergic reactions to their dander and fur, are hired by producer and studio executive Lew Lord (Orson Welles). The Muppets attempt to make their first movie involving a surreal pastiche of their experiences. The first take goes awry when Gonzo, holding pastiche versions of the balloons he flew away on earlier, crashes into the rainbow, breaking it in half and sending it falling onto the rest of the set, bringing it down as well, then Crazy Harry pulls two levers in the control room, which overloads the electricity circuits and causes enough of an explosion to blow a hole in the roof of the studio. However, in their stunned silence of the whole chain of events, a rainbow suddenly shines through the hole into the studio right onto the Muppets. The Muppets, joined by the characters from The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, and the "Land of Gorch" segment of Saturday Night Live, sing the final verses of "The Rainbow Connection".

text: As the screening ends, Sweetums jumps through the theater's screen, having finally caught up with the other Muppets.

text: Cast

text:
Charles Durning as Doc Hopper, a businessman, entrepreneur, and restaurateur.
Austin Pendleton as Max, Doc Hopper's shy right-hand man and sidekick.
Scott Walker as Snake Walker, an assassin who specializes in killing frogs.
Lawrence Gabriel Jr as Sailor
Ira F. Grubman as Bartender
H.B. Haggerty as Lumberjack
Bruce Kirby as Gate Guard
Tommy Madden as One-Eyed Midget
James Frawley as El Sleezo Café Waiter
Arnold Roberts as Cowboy
Melinda Dillon as a Woman with Balloon (uncredited)

text: Muppet performers

text:
Jim Henson as Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the Dog, Dr. Teeth, Waldorf, Swedish Chef
Frank Oz as Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Sam Eagle, Marvin Suggs
Jerry Nelson as Floyd Pepper, Crazy Harry, Robin the Frog, Lew Zealand, Camilla the Chicken
Richard Hunt as Scooter, Statler, Janice, Sweetums, Beaker
Dave Goelz as The Great Gonzo, Zoot, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Doglion
Caroll Spinney as Big Bird

text: Frank Oz appears in a cameo as a biker who beats up Fozzie Bear while Steve Whitmire appears as a man in the Bogen County Fair. Also, director Tim Burton is one of the puppeteers in the final shot of the film. John Landis is also in the final shot, performing Grover. Landis and Burton were both uncredited.

text: Cameo guest stars

text:
Dom DeLuise as Bernie, a Hollywood agent who meets Kermit in the swamp. The character's name is a reference to Bernie Brillstein, talent agent and producer of The Muppet Show.
James Coburn as El Sleezo Café Owner
Madeline Kahn as an El Sleezo Patron, with the same rhotacism and personality Kahn used for Lili von Shtupp in Blazing Saddles
Telly Savalas as El Sleezo Tough
Carol Kane as "Myth" (summoned by name)
Paul Williams as El Sleezo Pianist
Milton Berle as Mad Man Mooney, a used car salesman for whom Sweetums worked as a jack.
Elliott Gould as Compère, who announces Miss Piggy as the winner of the Bogen County Beauty Pageant
Edgar Bergen as Himself and Charlie McCarthy, playing judges at the Bogen County Fair. This would be Bergen's final film role, as he died shortly after his scene was filmed.
Bob Hope as Ice Cream Vendor
Richard Pryor as Balloon Vendor, a man who sells balloons to Gonzo at the Bogen County Fair.
Steve Martin as Insolent Waiter, a sarcastic waiter that works at the motel that Rowlf used to work at.
Mel Brooks as Professor Max Krassman, a mad scientist who is hired by Doc Hopper.
Cloris Leachman as Miss Tracy, Lew Lord's secretary who is allergic to animals.
Orson Welles as Lew Lord, a Hollywood producer and studio executive. The character's name is a reference to Sir Lew Grade, head of British company, ATV, which co-produced the original Muppet Show.

text: Production

text: The main obstacle the filmmakers were faced with during the development of The Muppet Movie was whether the Muppets would transition seamlessly from television to film. In 1978, director James Frawley, Jim Henson, and Frank Oz filmed several camera tests outside London to test how the characters would appear in real-world locations.[4]

text: To perform Kermit static on a log, Henson squeezed into a specially designed metal container complete with an air hose (to breathe), a rubber sleeve which came out of the top to perform Kermit and a monitor to see his performance, and placed himself under the water, log, and the Kermit puppet.[5] He was also assisted in this operation by Kathryn Mullen and Steve Whitmire. This scene took five days to film.

text: Before this, no film had a hand puppet act with its entire body appearing on-screen. That is, hand puppets were only seen from the waist up, and it became a major plot point to show Kermit with legs. To have Kermit ride a bicycle in a full-body shot, a Kermit puppet with legs was posed onto the seat and his legs and arms were attached to the pedals and handlebars. An overhead crane with a marionette system held the bicycle through strong strings invisible to the camera, guiding the bicycle forward. The crane and system was out of the camera's frame of vision.[4]

text: Other shots required Muppets standing and acting in a full-body shot. Specially-made, remote-controlled puppets were placed on the set and controlled by puppeteers out of the frame. A dancing Kermit and Fozzie Bear were operated by Henson and Frank Oz in front of a blue screen, and were composited onto a separate reel of the stage. Both of these effects and the bicycle effect would be used again, and refined, in subsequent Muppet films.

text: Austin Pendleton recalled that the film was shot on "a very unhappy set, because Jim [Frawley] was very unhappy directing that movie. And I noticed that was the only time the Muppet people used an outside person to direct a Muppet movie. They never did that again. After that, it was either Jim Henson or Frank Oz. And I would have liked to have been in one of those, because those sets were very harmonious. But this was not."[6] Filming locations included Albuquerque, New Mexico.[7]

text: The closing reprise of "Rainbow Connection" featured a crowd of more than 250 Muppet characters—virtually every Muppet that had been created up to that point in time. According to Henson Archivist Karen Falk: "137 puppeteers were enlisted from the Puppeteers of America (along with the regular Muppet performers) to perform every Muppet extant. Prior to the day-long filming of the shot, Jim Henson gave the enthusiastic participants a lesson in the art of cinematic puppetry. Amazingly, it did take just one day." The Muppet Show Fan Club newsletter answered the question of "How did they do it?" The response was "There are 250 puppets in the last shot of the film, and they're all moving. How? 150 puppeteers in a 6' deep, 17' wide pit, that's how. They were recruited through the Los Angeles Guild of The Puppeteers of America and almost every puppeteer west of the Rockies reported for pit duty."[8] The film is dedicated to ventriloquist Edgar Bergen who appears in the movie in a cameo role and died during production in September 1978.

text: Style

text: The Muppet Movie uses meta-references as a source of humor, as characters occasionally break the fourth wall to address the audience or comment on their real-life circumstances. In one scene, Kermit and Fozzie encounter Big Bird on the road, offering him a lift to Hollywood, but he declines, heading to New York City to break into public television, referencing the character's role in Sesame Street.

text: In a particularly meta-fictional plot twist, Kermit and Fozzie actually give the screenplay to Dr. Teeth, who later uses it to find and rescue them after they have been stranded in the desert.

text: Prop vehicles

text: Several classic cars were specially selected by Henson for appearances in the film. The most prominent were a pair of 1951 Studebaker Commander Coupes driven by Fozzie Bear in the film. One car was painted but unmodified and driven by a person in the front seat. It was used for long, traveling shots. The second car was driven by a person in the trunk, who viewed the road through a TV set. The television received its image from a camera located in the center nose of the car's front grille. This made it possible for Frank Oz to perform Fozzie Bear in the front seat, and have the character seemingly drive the car in close-up shots. This car is now on display at the Studebaker Museum in South Bend, Indiana.

text: Doc Hopper is chauffeured throughout the movie by Max in a 1959 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine.

text: The final car driven by the Muppets is a 1946 Ford Woodie station wagon, famous for its wood panel siding and a valuable collectible.

text: Music

text: The film's music was written by Kenneth Ascher and Paul Williams. Regarding the music's composition, Williams said; "Jim Henson gave you more [creative] freedom than anybody I've ever worked with in my life. I said, 'You want to hear the songs as we're writing them?' He said, 'No. I'll hear them in the studio. I know I'm gonna love them.' You just don't get that kind of freedom on a project these days."[9]

text: "Movin' Right Along", "Never Before, Never Again", and "I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along" were shortened in the film, compared to their soundtrack versions, for continuity purposes. The latter, a duet between Rowlf and Kermit, contained references that the studio considered too mature for children, although the song appeared complete in the British theatrical and home video debut versions. In "Finale: The Magic Store", a line performed by Kermit in the film is sung by Fozzie on the soundtrack recording.

text: Release

text: Box office

text: The film proved to be a huge hit at the box office during the summer of 1979 and ended up grossing $76,657,000 domestically[2][3] (adjusted for inflation, this would equal $265,703,546 in 2016 dollars), making it the seventh highest-grossing film of 1979 and also, the second highest-grossing Muppet film after the release of The Muppets in 2011. The success of the film gave Jim Henson Productions an opportunity to release more Muppet productions theatrically.

text: The film's successful theatrical release encouraged Lew Grade into furthering his own film distribution company, which later backfired with the massive box office failures of Can't Stop the Music (from EMI) and Raise the Titanic (from ITC), both released by Associated Film Distribution just a year later.[10]

text: Critical reception

text: The Muppet Movie received positive reviews. The film holds an 87% approval rating on aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes with an average score of 8/10, based on 47 reviews. The site's consensus says "The Muppet Movie, the big-screen debut of Jim Henson's plush creations, is smart, lighthearted, and fun for all ages."[11]

text: Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three-and-a-half out of four stars. In his favorable review, he was fascinated that "The Muppet Movie not only stars the Muppets but, for the first time, shows us their feet."[12] Vincent Canby of The New York Times offered equal praise, stating that the film "demonstrates once again that there's always room in movies for unbridled amiability when it's governed by intelligence and wit."[13]

text: In 2009, it was named to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant and will be preserved for all time.[14]

text:
AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs – Nominated[15]
AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs:

"Rainbow Connection" – #74

AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals – Nominated[16]

text: Home media

text: The Muppet Movie was the first film from ITC Entertainment to be released on home video when Magnetic Video issued it in January 1980, having acquired the video rights to ITC's films. It was reissued a few times more by CBS/Fox Video before it was released by Jim Henson Video in 1993. The movie was reissued on VHS by Columbia Tristar Home Video and Jim Henson Home Entertainment in June, 1999. The film's first DVD release was from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and Jim Henson Home Entertainment on June 5, 2001. It was re-released by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on DVD and reissued as a Walt Disney Pictures release on November 29, 2005 as Kermit's 50th Anniversary Edition.

text: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released The Muppet Movie as the Nearly 35th Anniversary Edition on Blu-ray Disc and DVD on August 13, 2013.[17]

text: Accolades

text:
Awards

Award
Date of ceremony
Category
Recipients and nominees
Result

Academy Awards
April 14, 1980
Best Original Song
"Rainbow Connection" – Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher
Nominated

Best Adaptation Score
Songs by Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher; Adaption by Paul Williams
Nominated

Golden Globe Awards
January 26, 1980
Best Original Song
"Rainbow Connection" – Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher
Nominated

Grammy Awards
February 27, 1980
Best Album for Children
Jim Henson and Paul Williams
Won

Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
Nominated

Saturn Awards
July 26, 1980
Best Fantasy Film

Won

Satellite Awards
February 23, 2014[18]
Best Youth Blu-ray
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Nominated

text: Footnotes

text: ^ The film's distribution rights were transferred to Walt Disney Studios in 2004, and was subsequently reissued in home media formats as a Walt Disney Pictures release in 2005.

tag: ol


document_title: Ed Sheeran

question_text: what is ed sheeran's record label called

question_tokens: what is ed sheeran 's record label called

text: Ed Sheeran

text: Early life

text: Sheeran was born in Halifax,[5] on 17 February 1991.[6] When he was a child, he moved with his family to Framlingham in Suffolk.[7] He has an older brother named Matthew,[8] who works as a composer. Sheeran's parents, John and Imogen, are from London. His paternal grandparents are Irish,[9][10][11] and Sheeran has stated that his father is from a "very large" Catholic family.[12] John is an art curator and lecturer, and Imogen is a culture publicist turned jewellery designer.[10][13] His parents ran Sheeran Lock, an independent art consultancy, from 1990 to 2010.[14]

text: Sheeran sang in a local church choir from the age of four, learned to play the guitar during his time at Rishworth School,[15] and began writing songs while at Thomas Mills High School in Framlingham.[16][17] He was accepted at the National Youth Theatre in London as a teenager.[18][19] He is a patron of the Youth Music Theatre UK[20] and of Access to Music, where he studied Artist Development course.[21][22] Sheeran is a second cousin of Northern Irish broadcaster Gordon Burns,[23] who hosted the British game show The Krypton Factor.[10]

text: Music career

text: 2004–2010: Career beginnings

text: Sheeran began recording music in 2004, and independently released his first collection of work, Spinning Man.[A] He has been friends with fellow English singer, Passenger, since he was 15, with the two playing on the same gig in Cambridge.[25] He moved to London in 2008, and began playing in small venues. In 2008, he auditioned for the ITV series, Britannia High.[26] He also opened for Nizlopi in Norwich in April 2008, after being one of their guitar technicians.[17] He released another EP in 2009, You Need Me, just before going on tour with Just Jack. He also did a few collaborations with Essex singer, Leddra Chapman, including CeeLo Green's "Fuck You". In February 2010, Sheeran posted a video through SB.TV, and rapper Example invited Sheeran to tour with him. In the same month, he also released his critically acclaimed Loose Change EP, which featured his future debut single, "The A Team".[27] In the autumn of 2009, Sheeran began studying music at the Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) in Guildford, Surrey as an undergraduate,[28][29] though it is not clear how long he remained at the college.

text: Sheeran began to be seen by more people over the internet through YouTube and his fan-base grew, with him also getting credit from The Independent newspaper, England football captain Rio Ferdinand and Elton John.[30] He played a Station Session in St. Pancras International in June 2010.[31][32] The episode is unavailable from the official Station Sessions channel.[33] Sheeran also self-released two other EPs in 2010, Ed Sheeran: Live at the Bedford and Songs I Wrote with Amy, which is a collection of love songs he wrote in Wales with singer, Amy Wadge.[34] In 2010 he was in Los Angeles and was invited to perform at The Foxxhole, a club run by actor Jamie Foxx, which ended with an invitation to stay at Foxx's home.[35]

text: On 8 January 2011, Sheeran released another independent EP, No. 5 Collaborations Project, featuring grime artists such as Wiley, Jme, Devlin, Sway and Ghetts.[36] With this EP, Sheeran gained mainstream attention for reaching number 2 in the iTunes chart without any promotion or label, selling over 7,000 copies in its first week.[37] Three months later, Sheeran put on a free show to fans at the Barfly in Camden Town. Over 1,000 fans turned up, so Sheeran played four different shows to ensure everyone saw a gig, including a gig outside on the street after the venue had closed. Later that month, Sheeran was signed to Asylum Records.[37]

text: 2011–2013: + and international success

text: On 26 April 2011, Sheeran appeared on the TV music show Later... with Jools Holland, where he performed his debut single "The A Team". Six weeks later, "The A Team" was released as a digital download in the UK. The release served as the lead single from Sheeran's debut studio album, + (pronounced "plus").[38] "The A Team" entered the UK Singles Chart at number three, selling over 58,000 copies in the first week. It was the best selling debut single and the overall eighth-best selling single of 2011, selling 801,000 copies.[39] The lead single also became a top ten hit in Australia, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway and the Netherlands. During a headline set in the BBC Introducing tent at Glastonbury Festival 2011, Sheeran announced that "You Need Me, I Don't Need You" would be released on 26 August as the second single from the album. The second single peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart.[40] "Lego House" was released as the third single, reaching the top ten on the Australian, Irish and New Zealand Singles Charts.[41] The music video for “Lego House” features Harry Potter actor Rupert Grint, as a play on their similar appearance.[42] "Drunk", released on 19 February 2012, became Sheeran's fourth consecutive top ten single in the UK, peaking at number nine.[43]

text: Sheeran released + on 12 September 2011. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics.[44] + debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart for sales of 102,000 copies.[45] By end of 2011, sales of the album in the UK stand at 791,000; it became the second best-selling debut album and the ninth biggest-selling album there.[46] The album has been certified platinum six times by the British Phonographic Industry, denoting shipments of 1,800,000 copies.[47] As of March 2012, the album had sold 1,021,072 copies in the UK.[48] The album also reached the top five in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the US.[49][50][51]

text: The song, "Moments", on the debut album by boy band One Direction, released in November 2011, was co-written by Sheeran.[52] At the 2012 Brit Awards on 21 February, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist, and British Breakthrough Act of the Year.[53][54] On 10 January 2012, it was announced that Sheeran would support Snow Patrol on their US tour from late March until May.[55] His song, "Give Me Love", was featured in the episode "Dangerous Liaisons" of The Vampire Diaries.[56] At the Ivor Novello Awards in May 2012, Sheeran's "The A Team" bested Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" and Florence and the Machine's "Shake It Out" for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.[57] Sheeran performed "The A Team" at the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II concert held on The Mall outside Buckingham Palace on 4 June 2012 and a cover of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics on 12 August 2012.[58]

text: Taylor Swift contacted Sheeran after hearing his music while touring Australia in March 2012.[59] He later co-wrote and provided vocals for "Everything Has Changed", a single featured on Swift's fourth studio album, Red. Sheeran also contributed two songs to One Direction's second studio album, Take Me Home, released in November 2012; the single "Little Things" became the group's second number-one in the UK.[60] Sheeran's album peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, while "The A Team" reached No. 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100.[59] In late 2012 and early 2013, he headlined a US tour of 6,000–9,000 capacity venues.[59] "The A Team" received a nomination for Song of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards.[61] Elton John, who runs Sheeran's management company, canvassed the award organisers to get Sheeran a performance slot at the ceremony but was told that Sheeran alone was not high-profile enough. John decided to appear with Sheeran to circumvent this problem.[62]

text: From March to September 2013, Sheeran played at arenas and stadiums across North America as the opening act for Swift's The Red Tour.[63][64] According to Sheeran, it was then his biggest tour and he added a scarlet RED tattoo to commemorate it.[65] In October 2013, Sheeran headlined three sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden, which has a capacity of 18,200.[64][66][67] At the concert, Sheeran debuted new songs including "Tenerife Sea",[68] a future track on his second studio album. Sheeran released "I See Fire" on 5 November 2013. The song is featured in the end credits of the film The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, the film's soundtrack, and on the deluxe version of his second album.[69] Sheeran was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2014 Grammy Awards.[70]

text: 2014–2015: x

text: On 24 March 2014, Sheeran performed at the Teenage Cancer Trust charity concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London where he unveiled "Take It Back", a track that would appear on the deluxe version of the second album.[71] "Sing", the lead single, was released on 7 April 2014. Sonically, the song is a departure from Sheeran's previous recordings.[72][73] "Sing" was intended to create hype over the album release, but from concern that this might alienate Sheeran's fan base, "One", an acoustic ballad, was released on 16 May 2014;[64][74] "One" also marked the first of several promotional singles released leading to the album release. By early June 2014, "Sing" had earned Sheeran his first number-one single in the UK.[75]

text: Sheeran's second studio album, x (pronounced "multiply"), was released worldwide on 23 June 2014. In a span of three years, Sheeran wrote more than 120 songs for the album,[76] the earliest of which was composed shortly after + was released.[77] The album features tracks produced by Rick Rubin, Pharrell Williams and Benny Blanco,[76] as well as that of Gosling's.[72] x peaked at number one in both the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200. To support the album, Sheeran embarked on a world tour starting on 6 August 2014 at Osaka, Japan. On 27 September 2014, Sheeran was one of the headline acts at the Melbourne Cricket Ground prior to the 2014 AFL Grand Final.[78] Following "Don't", "Thinking Out Loud" was released on 24 September 2014 as the album's third single. Unlike his previous music videos, Sheeran took the lead role in the single's accompaniment, where he performed a ballroom dance.[79] It became his second single to reach number one in the UK,[80] and it also spent eight weeks at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 (with only "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars keeping it from top spot).[81] In 2014, combined streams on Sheeran's catalogue in Spotify reached 860 million; Spotify named him the most-streamed artist and x the most-streamed album.[82] In the same year, the album made Sheeran iTunes' best-selling artist in the UK, Ireland and New Zealand.[83][84]

text: x was nominated for Album of the Year at the 57th Grammy Awards.[85] Sheeran performed alongside John Mayer at the ceremony.[86] On 25 February, Sheeran won British Male Solo Artist and British Album of the Year for x at the 2015 Brit Awards.[87] On 21 May he received the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year.[88] On 21 June, Sheeran co-hosted the 2015 Much Music Video Awards in Toronto, where he performed the singles, "Thinking Out Loud" and "Photograph"; he also won two awards, Best International Artist and Most Buzzworthy International Artist or Group.[89][90] On 27 June, Sheeran performed as the opening act for The Rolling Stones in their Zip Code Tour date in Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium.[91] On 10–12 July 2015, Sheeran performed sold-out shows at London's Wembley Stadium. The shows, which were announced in November 2014, were part of his world tour.[92] The concert was documented and aired on 16 August 2015 on NBC; the one-hour special Ed Sheeran – Live at Wembley Stadium also included behind-the-scenes footage.[93] In November 2015 Sheeran released the DVD Jumpers for Goalposts: Live at Wembley Stadium, the title a nod to playing concerts at Wembley Stadium, the home of English football.[94]

text: In 2015, Sheeran wrote "Love Yourself" for Justin Bieber's fourth album.[95] Sheeran had initially planned to put the song on his third album ÷ and added that the track would have been scrapped before Bieber took the song.[96] On 26 September, Sheeran performed at the 2015 Global Citizen Festival in Central Park's Great Lawn in New York, an event organised by Coldplay lead singer, Chris Martin, that advocates an end to extreme global poverty. Sheeran headlined the festival along with Beyoncé, Coldplay, and Pearl Jam. The festival was broadcast on NBC in the US on 27 September and the BBC in the UK on 28 September.[97] Sheeran co-hosted the 2015 MTV Europe Music Awards on 25 October in Milan, Italy. He won the awards for Best Live Act and Best Live Stage;[98] the latter was in recognition for his performance at the 2014 V Festival in England.[99] Sheeran won the Breakthrough award at the 2015 Billboard Touring Awards.[100] His single from x, "Thinking Out Loud", earned him two Grammy Awards at the 2016 ceremony: Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance. In May 2016, x was named the second-best-selling album worldwide in 2015, behind 25 by Adele.[101]

text: 2016–present: Hiatus and ÷

text: On 13 December 2016, after a year long hiatus and social media break, Sheeran tweeted a picture and changed his Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to a light blue, implying the release of a new album – each of Sheeran's previous albums were a single coloured background with a solid mathematical symbol.[102] On 1 January 2017, Sheeran uploaded a video on social media websites which shows him holding a piece of paper with the words "New Music Coming Friday" written on it.[103] On 2 January, he posted a 10-second video on Twitter and other social media showing what was the cover design of his forthcoming album entitled ÷ (pronounced "divide") which was released 3 March 2017.[104][105] The album debuted at number one in the UK, the US, Germany, Australia, Canada and other major markets.[106][107][108] With first week sales of 672,000 it is the fastest selling album by a male solo artist in the UK, and third fastest in UK chart history behind 25 by Adele and Be Here Now by Oasis.[106] It had the biggest first week sales of 2017 in the US, until it was surpassed by Taylor Swift's Reputation.[107]

text: On 6 January, Sheeran released two singles, "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill"; the theme of the latter single is about Sheeran's upbringing in his home town of Framlingham in Suffolk, with the castle referring to Framlingham Castle.[109] Following the release of these singles, Sheeran went on to co-host the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show with Scott Mills where it was inferred that he would possibly make an appearance at the Glastonbury Festival in 2017.[110] It was also during this show that Sheeran used a new Martin guitar that featured the ÷ logo (of his new album) on both the headstock and body of the acoustic guitar.[111] Both singles went on to break the Spotify day one streaming record, with a combined total of over 13 million streams in 24 hours.[112]

text: On 13 January, "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill" entered the UK Singles Chart at number one and number two, the first time in history an artist has taken the top two UK chart positions with new songs.[113] The same day he also became the first artist to debut at number one and number two on the official German Single Charts.[114] On 15 January, the songs debuted at number one and number two on the ARIA Singles Chart, the first time this has been achieved in the history of the Australian chart.[115] On 17 January, "Shape of You" debuted at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, while "Castle on the Hill" entered at number six; this made Sheeran the first artist ever to have two songs simultaneously debut in the US top 10.[116]

text: On 26 January, Sheeran announced tour dates for the album ÷ in Europe, South America and North America from 17 March until 14 June 2017.[117] Sheeran played to over 950,000 people in Australia and New Zealand in March and April 2018, making it the biggest concert tour in Australasian music history, overtaking the previous record set by Dire Straits in 1986.[118] On 17 February 2017, Sheeran released "How Would You Feel (Paean)". Though not an official single, the song peaked at number two in the UK.[119] By 11 March 2017 Sheeran had accumulated ten top 10 singles from ÷ on the UK Singles Chart, breaking Scottish DJ Calvin Harris's record of nine top 10 singles from one album.[120] On hearing the news Harris stated "Congrats Ed but also fuck you I love you but also fuck you."[120] At the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards Sheeran was named Artist of the Year.[121] The fourth single from ÷, "Perfect", reached number one in the UK and Australia, and a stripped down acoustic version of the song titled "Perfect Duet", a collaboration with Beyoncé, reached number one in the US and the UK,[122][123] becoming the year's UK Christmas number one.[124] On 7 November, Taylor Swift revealed that Sheeran collaborated on the song "End Game" for her sixth studio album Reputation.[125] The song, which also features rapper Future, was released on 10 November.[126]

text:
“He’s like the Tom Hanks of music. If you were going to talk about an actor who’s the nicest actor on the planet, everybody knows it’s Tom Hanks. And I think everybody knows that Ed Sheeran is a good person. He’s the most unaffected popstar that’s having incredible success. There should be a study on him to see how he’s doing it.”

—Pop singer Robbie Williams speaking to the Manchester Evening News on Sheeran being down to earth.[127]

tag: div

text: On 4 December, Sheeran was named Spotify's most streamed artist of 2017 with 6.3 billion streams. He has Spotify's biggest album of the year with ÷ streamed 3.1 billion times, and the top song with "Shape of You" with 1.4 billion streams.[128] On 5 December 2017, hip-hop artist Eminem announced that Sheeran had collaborated on the song "River" for his ninth studio album Revival.[129] On working with Eminem, Sheeran stated, "He is one of the reasons I started writing songs, and was such a pleasure to work with him."[129] Speaking on The Late Late Show on Irish television on 15 December, Sheeran stated he has a theme song written for a James Bond film in case he gets the call from producers of the film series.[130]

text: On 3 January 2018, "Shape of You" was named the best selling single of 2017 in the UK,[131] and the best selling single of 2017 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.[132] The same day, ÷ was named the best selling album of 2017 in the UK,[133] and the US.[134] At the 2018 Brit Awards held at the O2 Arena in London on 21 February, Sheeran performed "Supermarket Flowers", and received the Global Success Award.[135] In April 2018, the IFPI named ÷ the best-selling album worldwide of 2017.[136] At the 2018 Billboard Music Awards on 20 May, Sheeran performed "Galway Girl" from Phoenix Park in Dublin, Ireland, and picked up six awards, including Top Artist and Top Hot 100 Artist.[137]

text: Influences

text: Sheeran's earliest memories include listening to the records of Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan and Elton John's Greatest Hits.[35] According to Sheeran, the album that introduced him to music was Van Morrison's Irish Heartbeat.[10] During his childhood his father took him to live concerts that would inspire his musical creations. These included seeing Eric Clapton at the Royal Albert Hall, Paul McCartney in Birmingham, and Bob Dylan.[138] On the influence of Clapton, Sheeran states, "He's the reason I started playing guitar".[139] He singled out Clapton's performance at the Party at the Palace in the grounds of Buckingham Palace, "I was eleven when I saw Eric Clapton play at the Queen's Golden Jubilee concert in June 2002. I remember him walking on stage with this rainbow-coloured Stratocaster and playing the first riff of "Layla". I was hooked. Two days later I bought a black Stratocaster copy for £30 that came with an amp. All I did for the next month was try to play that Layla riff."[140]

text: He has also cited The Beatles, Nizlopi and Eminem as his biggest musical influences.[141][142] According to Sheeran, he had a stutter in his speech when he was younger, and he credited rapping along to Eminem's The Marshall Mathers LP for helping him get rid of it.[143] He was also inspired by "Cannonball" singer-songwriter Damien Rice in 2002, with Sheeran stating, "seeing him play this small club in Ireland, I was able to meet him, and he was unbelievably cool. I went straight home and started writing songs. I would not be doing what I'm doing now if he'd been a jerk."[144] Sheeran collaborated with his idol Eric Clapton in April 2016, with Sheeran stating to People magazine, "I sang on Eric Clapton's album [I Still Do]. It's one thing having him on mine, but being his, that's an honour that you can't ever pinpoint on how great that is. I did something for his record, and I was credited as 'Angelo Mysterioso,' [appearing as a guest on Clapton's "I Will Be There", in addition to performing the song with Clapton on stage], and he did something for my record [performing a guitar solo on "Dive" on Sheeran's album ÷] and was credited as 'Angelo Mysterioso.'"[139]

text: Other ventures

text: Gingerbread Man records

text: In March 2015, Sheeran revealed he was setting up a record label, Gingerbread Man Records, which is a deal with Warner Music Group.[145] The label was launched in August 2015 alongside its accompanying YouTube channel.[146] Jamie Lawson, the label's first signee, met Sheeran while they were both in London's folk circuit.[147] Lawson released his self-titled debut album on 9 October 2015, which has earned him a number one in the UK Albums Chart.[148] Sheeran signed his second artist, Foy Vance, in November 2015.[149]

text: Charity

text: Sheeran performed a gig in Bristol, which raised £40,000 for a charity that reaches out to street sex workers. "It's good to show insight that these people are real people with real emotions and they deserve the same charity work as anyone else," Sheeran said. "There's a lot more popular charities that get a lot of attention. And with certain subjects like this they're often washed over and people don't necessarily give them the attention they deserve." Tickets were available to those taking part in the charity's Give it up for One25 campaign by giving something up for 125 hours and hitting the £40,000 fundraising mark.[150]

text: Sheeran frequently gives away his clothes to charity shops around Suffolk, his home county.[151] An ambassador for East Anglia's Children's Hospice, he has donated clothes to the St Elizabeth Hospice charity shop in his home town Framlingham, including eight bags of clothes to the shop in February 2014, and eight items of clothing he wore at the 2015 Grammy Awards.[152] In 2016 he donated 13 bags of clothes to the shop.[153] The tartan shirt worn by Sheeran when he met Renee Zellweger's character, Bridget, in Bridget Jones's Baby, was auctioned online to raise further funds for the hospice.[153]

text: On 15 November 2014, Sheeran joined the charity supergroup Band Aid 30 along with other British and Irish pop acts, recording the latest version of the track "Do They Know It's Christmas?" at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, to raise money for the West African Ebola virus epidemic.[154]

text: In November 2015, Sheeran supported the No Cold Homes campaign by the UK charity, Turn2us.[155] Sheeran was one of nearly thirty celebrities, which included Helen Mirren, Jeremy Irons and Hugh Laurie, to donate items of winter clothing to the campaign, with the proceeds used to help people in the country struggling to keep their home warm in winter.[156]

text: Sheeran appeared in a November 2017 episode of Gogglebox along with other UK celebrities such as Ozzy Osbourne, former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, and Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn as part of Channel 4 and Cancer Research UK's Stand Up to Cancer fundraising campaign.[157]

text: Acting

text: Sheeran made his acting debut in 2014, a cameo role as himself on New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street, filmed while he was in the country for a one-off performance.[158] In May 2015, he appeared as himself and performed on a live episode of the NBC sitcom Undateable.[159] Later that year, while in Australia, he recorded scenes for the soap Home and Away, as a character based on himself.[160]

text: After recording a cover version of Foy Vance's "Make It Rain" for Sons of Anarchy, Sheeran was cast by creator Kurt Sutter to play Sir Cormac in the medieval drama The Bastard Executioner on FX.[161] Sheeran also appeared as himself in the 2016 film Bridget Jones's Baby in a scene where Bridget Jones, played by Renée Zellweger, encounters the singer at the Glastonbury Festival where he is performing.[162]

text: In July 2017, Sheeran appeared in a longer cameo on Game of Thrones in a scene together with actress Maisie Williams, who plays the character Arya Stark.[163] David Benioff explained that since Williams was a big fan of the singer, they wanted to have Sheeran appear on the show to surprise Williams, and that they had tried to get him on for years.[164] It received a mix of positive and very critical reviews.[165][166]

text: Personal life

text: In early 2011, after securing recording and publishing deals, Sheeran purchased and renovated a farm near Framlingham, Suffolk, where he was raised. He has stated that he hopes to raise a family there.[64][167] During 2013, he lived between Hendersonville, Tennessee and Los Angeles, California.[168] In 2014, he bought a house in South London.[64]

text: Sheeran was in a relationship with Scottish singer-songwriter Nina Nesbitt (who was in his music video for "Drunk") in 2012, before breaking up.[169] Nesbitt is the subject of Sheeran's songs "Nina" and "Photograph", while most of Nesbitt's album, Peroxide, is about Sheeran.[169] In January 2014, Sheeran was in a relationship with Athina Andrelos, who works for chef Jamie Oliver.[170] She is the inspiration of Sheeran's song "Thinking Out Loud".[171] They broke up in February 2015.[171] Since July 2015, Sheeran has been in a relationship with childhood friend and former high school classmate Cherry Seaborn.[172] They announced their engagement in January 2018.[173] He is also close friends with singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, and collaborated on her albums Red and Reputation.[139]

text: In June 2015, Forbes listed his earnings at $57 million for the previous 12 months, and ranked him the 27th-highest-earning celebrity in the world.[174] On 19 October 2015, Sheeran received an honorary degree from the University of Suffolk in Ipswich for his "outstanding contribution to music".[175] Sheeran commented: "Suffolk is very much where I call home. Receiving this recognition is a real privilege."[175]

text: Sheeran supported Vote Remain at the United Kingdom European Union membership referendum in 2016, voicing his opposition to Brexit.[176] In a December 2017 interview with The Sunday Times' "Culture" magazine, Sheeran spoke of his admiration for Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. "I love Corbyn. I love everything Corbyn is about. And I feel people thought that, because I didn't put myself behind him, I wasn't a Corbyn supporter. He cares about other people. He cares about all classes, races and generations, and that's how I was brought up – we need more people that care about everyone."[177]

text: Awards and nominations

text: Sheeran was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2017 Birthday Honours for services to music and charity.[178] He received the award from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace on 7 December 2017.[179]

text: Discography

text:
+ (2011)
× (2014)
÷ (2017)

text: Filmography

text:
Year
Title
Role
Notes
Ref(s)

2014
Shortland Street
Himself

[158]

2015
Undateable
Himself

[159]

Home and Away
Teddy

[160]

The Bastard Executioner
Sir Cormac
5 episodes
[161]

Jumpers for Goalposts: Live at Wembley Stadium
Himself
Concert Film
[180]

2016
Bridget Jones's Baby
Himself

[181]

2017
Game of Thrones
Lannister soldier
Episode: "Dragonstone"
[182]

2018
The Simpsons
Brendan (voice)
Episode: "Haw-Haw Land"
[183]

2019
Untitled Danny Boyle/Richard Curtis film

Filming

text: Tours

text: Headlining act

text:
+ Tour (2011–2013)
× Tour (2014–2015)
÷ Tour (2017–2018)

text: Opening act

text:
Snow Patrol's Fallen Empires Tour (North American select dates) (2012)
Taylor Swift's The Red Tour (all North American dates) (2013)
The Rolling Stones's Zip Code Tour (Kansas City only)