WITH his red hair, tattoos and cheeky smile Matthew Cox certainly shares a striking resemblance to a certain Grammy-award-winning singer.

Customers at Crème Cakes and Shakes, in Leigh Broadway, could be forgiven for wondering if their steak, eggs ‘n’ hash and chocoholic waffles are being cooked up behind the counter by megastar performer Ed Sheeran.

At least three or four times a day chef Matt, a former Southend High School for Boys pupil, will be asked whether he is in fact the A Team hitmaker.

Troy Giles, co-owner of the cafe, which specialise in towering treats including calorific cake milkshakes, said: “Matt is a brilliant chef and he certainly does look a lot like Ed Sheeran. We’ve had customers coming in and asking to have their photos taken with him!”

Matt, 26, from Shoebury, is no stranger to being likened to Sheeran, who was brought up just across the Essex border in Suffolk and is known for his emotional love songs and lyrics. Matt even has a number of colourful tattoos on his arms just like the Don’t and Photograph singer.

“I’ve been getting it for years, ever since he began getting famous,” said Matt, a former Southend High School for Boys pupil. “I used to work as a barman and it would be constant throughout the evening from customers, especially as the drinks flowed. I never minded though.

“At least three or four times a day now I’ll get ‘has anyone ever told you, you look like Ed Sheeran?’. “I just laugh as it’s actually really nice to be compared to him. I think he is an incredibly talented musician but he also seems like a really nice personal as well.”

So has anyone thought Matt was more than just a doppelganger?

“I have had people who wanted to have their photo taken and ask for an autograph. I just have to laugh and break the news to them that I’m not actually Ed Sheeran! The weird thing is Ed Sheeran has a brother called Matt who is about my age. I’ve asked my mum if she needs to tell me anything but she assures me I’m definitely hers!

Matt has tinkered with a musical career himself but admits his acoustic talents are lacking somewhat compared to 25-year-old Sheeran’s.

He laughed: “I can play Wonderwall on the guitar but then can’t everyone? “That’s about it. I used to sing a bit at Karaoke nights, Ed Sheeran songs of course for a laugh, maybe I should start doing that again?”

Matt has worked in the service and catering industry for several years and although he loves his chef job at Cremes his real passion is for paintball. He excels at Supair paintball and his dream is to move to America to compete professionally.

Sheeran, who was born in Yorkshire but raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, famously dropped out of school at 16 to pursue his music career. He’s now said to be worth around £40 million.

With that much cash in the bank there’s probably not much chance of him dropping in Cremes for a red velvet cake shake anytime soon.

“Well apparently he’s taking a year off at the moment to relax so who knows?” said Matt. “I don’t know what I would say to him if I ever met him. I’d probably make him a milkshake, on the house of course!”

The café is currently working to raise £5,000 for Macmillan Cancer Research through a variety of endeavours, including Troy embarking on a sponsored weight loss.

Troy added: “Now we’ve got our own Ed Sheeran here maybe customers will donate to such a brilliant cause. We only opened in November and we have been amazed by how far people across Essex and London are coming for one of our amazing shakes.”