Ed Sheeran has urged his fans to help Sir Elton John knock him off the top spot in the UK singles chart.

On Sunday, provisional Official Charts Company rankings showed Sir Elton and Dua Lipa’s single Cold Heart was on course to end Sheeran’s four-week reign at the top of the chart with Shivers.

Cold Heart was second in last week’s chart.

Sheeran wrote on Instagram: “@eltonjohn is so close to knocking me off the #1 spot in the U.K.

“It will be his first number one in almost twenty years and I really want it to happen.

“Please go buy/stream/download Cold Heart with @dualipa now, 15 weeks at #1 was more than I ever expected anyway, love you all.

“Who doesn’t wanna be knocked off by Elton anyway.”

Brexit
Sir Elton John (Matt Crossick/PA)

Sheeran shared the message alongside a black and white photo of himself with Sir Elton.

On Wednesday, Sir Elton set a new record as he became the only act to secure a top 10 single in the UK charts across six different decades, according to the Official Charts Company.

He overtook musicians including Elvis, Cher, Sir Cliff Richard, Michael Jackson and David Bowie, who all achieved top 10 tracks across five decades.

Sir Elton, 74, has achieved 33 top 10 singles across his career, making his debut on the chart in 1971 with Your Song, which reached number seven and later re-entered in fourth place in 2002.

The 1970s were his most successful period, landing 10 singles in the top 10 including Rocket Man, Don’t Go Breaking My Heart and Are You Ready For Love.

His last number one came in 2005 when he featured on 2Pac track Ghetto Gospel.

This week’s final chart rankings will be revealed on Friday.