Flame-haired hitmaker Ed Sheeran has given an update on the progress of his forthcoming new studio album.

The 'Small Bump' sensation explained to Billboard.com that he found a lot of time to write during his recent tour with Snow Patrol and made great use of the opportunity to be creative:

"I did the second album on tour with Snow Patrol. I found myself with a lot of free time, so I wrote a lot of songs and it's pretty much structurally there."

He's been absent from social networking site Twitter all week because he had the chance to "hibernate" due to a break in his schedule and tweeted (July 16):

"I'm gonna be in hibernation this week. Follow my manager @StuartCamp for gig updates and info on his belly button."