The original Band Aid single was released in 1984 and raised around £8 million for famine relief in Ethiopia, followed by the 1985 Live Aid concert.
Do They Know It’s Christmas? was subsequently re-recorded in 1989, 2004 and 2014. The 2014 version on which Sheeran appeared raised money for countries affected by the Ebola virus.
That year, Sir Bob addressed criticism, saying: “Where Band Aid is effective is that it creates all this noise. It creates this argument, it creates this debate. People find it very hard to understand that I love the level of criticism. I personally enjoy it.”
To those who believe that the song’s lyrics are patronising, he said: “It’s a pop song, not a doctoral thesis.”
The new “ultimate mix” will launch on November 25, the 40th anniversary of the original song being recorded.