Sinead O’Connor’s family has invited people to line the seafront at Bray in County Wicklow and say “a last goodbye” during her funeral procession.
The cortege will travel from Harbour Bar to Strand Road, pausing briefly at the home on Strand Road, Montebello, where she lived for 15 years.
In a statement, her relatives said:
“Sinead loved living in Bray and the people in it. With this procession, her family would like to acknowledge the outpouring of love for her from the people of County Wicklow and beyond, since she left last week to go to another place.
“The Gardai (police) have asked that people gather, if they would like to say a last goodbye to the singer, from 10.30 am on Tuesday along the Bray seafront”.
Relative’s statement
The 56-year-old Grammy-winning artist was found unresponsive when police were called to her home in southeast London on 28 July.
Her death is not being treated as suspicious, and details of the post-mortem will not be released unless an inquest is ordered.
O’Connor is survived by three of her four children – Jake, Roisin, and Yeshua. Her 17-year-old son Shane died by suicide last year.
She continued to perform and record as Sinead O’Connor but changed her name to Shuhada’ Sadaqat following her conversion to Islam in 2018.
The singer’s spell-binding version of the Prince hit ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ instantly propelled her to global stardom in 1990.
But she gained as much notoriety for her fierce stance on social and political issues, most notably the child abuse scandal in the Catholic Church.
Long before the scale of the issue came to light, she controversially tore up a picture of the Pope on an American chat show.
Hillside tribute unveiled close to town where singer will be buried
A tribute to the late singer Sinead O’Connor was unveiled on a hillside near the seaside town in Ireland where her funeral will be held.
The huge white words saying “Eire ♡ Sinead” are above a World War Two navigational landmark saying “Eire” which was rediscovered in 2018 and close to Bray in County Wicklow. Eire is the Irish word for Ireland.
The installation was created by Dublin-based creative agency The Tenth Man and the letters measure 30ft in length.
Executive creative director Richard Seabrooke said:
“So much has been said about Sinead since her recent passing, I’m not sure what is left to say. We just wanted to take the opportunity to mark the moment with a bold statement that symbolizes what she meant to this little country of ours”.
Richard Seabroke
The funeral cortege is to travel along the seafront, starting at the Harbour Bar and continuing to the other end of Strand Road, before continuing on to a private burial.
O’Connor’s death sparked a host of tributes from fans and famous artists from across the world, including Russell Crowe, Annie Lennox, Cyndi Lauper, and Bob Geldof.
Several gatherings have also been held in Dublin, Belfast, and London, where members of the public paid tribute to her legacy as a musician and activist.
Following her death, her music management company, 67 Management, revealed she had been finishing a new album, reviewing tour dates for next year, and was also considering “opportunities” around a movie of her book.
O’Connor did things her way, unapologetic and impossible to ignore.
A gifted singer-songwriter, she was a non-conformist – shaving her head in response to industry pressure to look glamorous – but became known as much for her private struggles and provocative actions as for her fierce and expressive music.
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