Thousands of fans lined the streets of Mumbles in Swansea, Wales, on Saturday as Bonnie Tyler’s coffin was brought back to the home she kept overlooking Swansea Bay.
Mourners gathered along Newton Road on Aug. 15 to say goodbye to the Welsh singer whose unmistakable voice powered some of the biggest pop-rock anthems of the 1980s. Her coffin was draped in the Welsh flag and accompanied by a framed photograph of Tyler.
As the hearse moved through the crowd, fans applauded, tossed flowers onto the vehicle and broke into “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” according to BBC Wales.
Tyler, who was born Gaynor Hopkins and used the married name Gaynor Sullivan, died unexpectedly in a hospital in Portugal on July 8. She was 75. Her official account said she died as a result of the illness for which she was being treated. Tyler had undergone emergency intestinal surgery in May, but her family did not publicly identify a more specific cause of death.
Fans Filled Newton Road for Tyler’s Homecoming
The Saturday procession began at William Pressdee Funeralcare in Mumbles before traveling along Newton Road toward Tyler’s home in Llwynderw. Some fans followed behind the hearse on foot, while others waited near the property beside floral tributes. The gathering drew people from across Britain and continental Europe.
The Guardian reported that some had traveled from as far as Austria, while the BBC spoke with a mother and son who came from Berlin after years of following Tyler’s music. Local mourners also remembered the international star as a familiar presence around Swansea.
Tyler divided her time between south Wales and Portugal, but she maintained close ties to the community where she had grown up. Eighteen-year-old Carys Edwards told PA Media that Tyler was “an inspiration to everybody” and said the singer was always coming home to Wales. “Her songs really did touch a lot of people here in Wales,” she said.
Swansea’s Farewell Continues Monday
The public farewell will continue Monday, Aug. 17, with a celebration of Tyler’s life at Swansea Minster beginning at noon. Attendance inside the church is limited to family, friends and invited guests, but Swansea officials said the service will be shown on a large screen in nearby St David’s Square so members of the public can watch.
The service will also be available through the official online stream shared by Tyler’s team. The funeral directors have warned fans that the official stream does not require payment and urged them to avoid copycat links asking for money.
After the service, Tyler’s cortege is expected to travel through her childhood village of Skewen at about 1:20 p.m. local time. Tyler’s family asked supporters to consider donating in her memory to Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales or Cerebral Palsy Cymru instead of sending flowers.
‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ Became the Sound of the Procession
The song fans chose to sing on Newton Road was also Tyler’s defining international hit. Written by Jim Steinman and released in 1983, “Total Eclipse of the Heart” reached No. 1 in both the United Kingdom and the United States. In Britain, it spent two weeks at the top of the Official Singles Chart, while in the U.S. it led the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks.
The song appeared on Tyler’s album Faster Than the Speed of Night, which also reached No. 1 in the U.K. and earned her a Grammy nomination. “Total Eclipse of the Heart” itself brought Tyler another Grammy nomination and went on to surpass one billion streams. Tyler had begun singing in clubs in south Wales before breaking through with “Lost in France” and “It’s a Heartache” in the 1970s.
She later recorded another enduring anthem, “Holding Out for a Hero,” and represented the United Kingdom with “Believe in Me” at the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest, where she finished 19th. She was appointed an MBE in 2022 for services to music. Tyler is survived by Robert Sullivan, her husband of more than 50 years, as well as nieces and nephews.