Sinéad O’Connor’s life in pictures
On Wednesday, Sinéad O’Connor’s family announced her death “with great sadness”.
The Irish singer-songwriter died at the age of 56.
Here, a selection of images pay tribute to her unforgettable talent and unique style.
Sinéad Marie Bernadette O’Connor was born on 8 December 1966 in the affluent Glenageary suburb of Dublin.
Her debut album in 1987, The Lion and the Cobra, was a storming success, earning O’Connor a Grammy nomination for best female rock vocal performance.
Her follow-up album, the Grammy-winning I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got, featured her most successful single, a cover of the Prince song Nothing Compares 2 U.
It was propelled to the top of the charts in the UK, Ireland and the US by a haunting video which chiefly featured a close-up of the singer’s face as she sang, and – memorably – cried.
In 1999, O’Connor was ordained a priest in the Latin Tridentine Church, an independent Catholic church, not in communion with Rome.
Despite her disdain for the Church hierarchy, O’Connor always maintained she was a practising Christian and a devout Catholic.
O’Connor was outspoken on subjects ranging from religion to women’s rights and racism, once tearing up a photo of Pope John Paul II on US TV.
O’Connor converted to Islam in 2018, and changed her name to Shuhada’ Sadaqat, but continued to perform under her birth name.
In January 2022, O’Connor’s 17-year-old son Shane took his own life.
A year later, she received the Classic Irish Album award for I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got at the RTÉ Choice Music Prize in March 2023.
Tributes have poured in for the award-winning artist, with singer Annie Lennox describing O’Connor as “fierce and fragile” with an “incredible voice”.
“May the angels hold you in their tender arms and give you rest,” she added.
