Bonnie Tyler, 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' singer, dies at 75
The Welsh pop star's 1983 power ballad became a cultural phenomenon, racking up over 1 billion streams and resurging during solar eclipses.
The day's top stories, food & events — every morning at 7. Unsubscribe anytime.
Bonnie Tyler, the gravelly-voiced Welsh pop star best known for the chart-topping power ballad "Total Eclipse of the Heart," has died at 75. She died unexpectedly in a hospital in Portugal where she was being treated for an illness, her family announced Thursday.
Tyler was hospitalized in May in Faro, where she had a home, for emergency intestinal surgery and was later placed in an induced coma. Born Gaynor Hopkins in Skewen, Wales, in public housing, she grew up adoring the Beatles and artists like Janis Joplin and Tina Turner. After throat surgery in 1976 to remove nodules, she developed her trademark husky vocal tone. Changing her name to Bonnie Tyler, her debut album in 1977 contained her first chart hit, "Lost in France."
"Total Eclipse of the Heart" spent four weeks at No. 1, and its video has surpassed 1 billion views. The song has had more than 1 billion streams, boosted by real solar and lunar eclipses in 2017 and 2024. Tyler earned three Grammy nominations, represented Britain at Eurovision 2013 (finishing 19th), and was awarded an MBE for her services to music by Queen Elizabeth II in 2023. The ballad has been covered by Nicki French, Westlife, and One Direction, and appeared in films including "Bandits" and "Old School."
