SWANSEA, Wales — Hundreds of fans lined the streets of the seaside village of Mumbles on Saturday as the coffin of Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler was brought home, weeks after the Grammy-nominated artist died at age 75.
The hearse carrying Tyler’s coffin, draped in a Welsh flag, passed through Mumbles near Swansea as local residents and fans from across the United Kingdom gathered to pay their respects.
Dozens of mourners also waited outside Tyler’s former home and left floral tributes.
“She was always coming home and making sure that she came back to her fans in Wales,” 18-year-old Carys Edwards said. “Her songs really did touch a lot of people here in Wales; we loved her a lot.”
Tyler died last month at a hospital in Portugal after undergoing emergency intestinal surgery. She had been hospitalized in May in Faro, where she maintained a home.
Born Gaynor Hopkins, Tyler grew up in Skewen, Wales, about 7 miles (11 kilometers) outside Swansea. She was the daughter of a coal miner and grew up with three sisters and two brothers.
Tyler became an international star with her 1983 hit “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” which topped the charts in both Britain and the United States. The song has accumulated more than 1 billion streams and gained renewed attention during solar eclipses in 2017, 2024 and this year.
She also recorded hits including “It’s a Heartache” and “Holding Out For a Hero,” which appeared on the “Footloose” soundtrack.
Tyler earned three Grammy nominations and represented Britain at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, finishing 19th.
Queen Elizabeth II named Tyler a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2022 for her contributions to music.
A celebration of Tyler’s life for family and friends will take place at a church in Swansea on Monday. Her final journey will then continue through her hometown of Skewen.
