Introverts know all too well the importance of having a go-to party trick. Tie a cherry stem in a knot with your tongue or saber the top off a champagne bottle, and you're free to leave early and still be the highlight of the event. You just show up, force a few memories, and slip out without having to say goodbye. It's key and Ed Sheeran knows that. Sheeran, a textbook introvert — the guy doesn't even own a cellphone — has long had the same party trick for press appearances, but it still manages to impress us because it's a really good one. It's called the Malteser Challenge and it involves him shoving as many malted milk balls in his mouth as possible. After years of performing the trick, the Brit broke his record last night on Carpool Karaoke with James Corden.
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For a while, 52 malt balls was the record Ed Sheeran held, and he has tried unsuccessfully to beat that numerous times since setting it. Here are a few examples of Sheeran entertaining many but still falling short of breaking the record.
James Corden brought it up last night when the singer accompanied him on Carpool Karaoke. Corden said, "I want to clear something up that I read about you and I don't know if this is true. There is a snack in Britain called Maltesers, is it true that you can fit 47 Maltesers in your mouth?" As we've seen above, this is of course true, and Sheeran admitted it. It just so happened that Corden had a huge jar of the malt balls in the car console. So, in between singing Shape of You and talking about how he likes to drag Justin Bieber to nasty dive bars, Ed humored Corden and showed off his skills.
Don't worry, James Corden didn't make Ed Sheeran do it alone. He also tried it out and failed miserably, choking at just 26. Sheeran, on the other hand, made it all the way to 55. Congratulations on breaking your record, Ed. Maybe it's time to try a new candy.