Watch Paparazzi

Singer Ed Sheeran spotted wearing Audemars Piguet

Ed Sheeran stepped onto the stage of the Royal Albert Hall for the Teenage Cancer Trust concert wearing one of the most technically demanding references in the current Audemars Piguet lineup — the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 26579CB in white ceramic. For a performer known for keeping his stage presentation stripped back, the choice of wristwatch was anything but understated.

The Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 26579CB was introduced in 2019, two years after the black ceramic 26401CB made the case that AP could translate Gérald Genta's 1972 steel sports icon into high-tech ceramics without losing its edge. White ceramic presented a considerably greater engineering challenge: the material is harder to machine to tight tolerances, and achieving the alternating brushed and polished surfaces that define the Royal Oak's visual identity required new grinding and polishing techniques. The result is a 41mm case and integrated bracelet in zirconia-based white ceramic that holds its crisp geometry with no risk of scratching or discoloration over time.

Beneath the dial sits Calibre 5134, AP's self-winding perpetual calendar movement running at 19,800 vph with a 40-hour power reserve. The mechanism requires no manual correction until the year 2100, accounting automatically for months of varying length and leap years. The dark blue grande tapisserie dial — a pattern that has defined the Royal Oak since its earliest references — displays the full perpetual calendar suite: day, date, month, week of year, and an astronomical moon phase accurate to one day's deviation every 122 years.

Among collectors, the 26579CB occupies a specific niche: it delivers perpetual calendar complications in a sports-watch format at a size and weight profile that white ceramic makes genuinely wearable. The reference is not produced in large numbers, and its combination of technical depth and material rarity keeps secondary market demand consistent.

Sheeran has built a serious watch collection over the years, with AP pieces appearing regularly on his wrist both offstage and on. Wearing the 26579CB at a charity concert rather than a red carpet speaks to how he approaches the hobby — as a wearer, not a dresser.