Bonnie Tyler, the Welsh singer best known for her 1983 global hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart," has died unexpectedly at the age of 75. Her death was announced on Friday by her family and team, who stated she passed away in a hospital in Portugal.
Tyler had been receiving treatment for an illness and had recently been in intensive care following cardiac arrest, which led to her being placed in an induced coma. She had undergone emergency intestinal surgery in May due to a perforated intestine after a burst appendix. At the time, her spokesperson confirmed the surgery went well, but her condition later worsened, leading to her transfer to intensive care.
Born Gaynor Hopkins in 1951 in Skewen, Wales, Tyler began her singing career in local clubs in the 1970s. She met her husband, Robert Sullivan, in 1970 when he was managing a club in Swansea. The couple married three years later and remained together for 53 years. Tyler often attributed the longevity of their relationship to meeting before she achieved fame.
They did not have children; Tyler had a miscarriage at age 40, and they had left it too late to stop using contraception. Tyler expressed her love for her nieces and nephews.
Robert Sullivan, a former Olympic judoka competitor for Great Britain in the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics, transitioned to a successful career in real estate and property development. He and Tyler invested in properties worldwide, including a cashmere goat and dairy farm in New Zealand and stables in Berkshire, England. They also owned and rented out numerous houses.
The couple divided their time between homes in Portugal, where Tyler had a villa in the Algarve that she rebuilt with a glass facade and elaborate water features, and South Wales.
Tyler's career spanned over five decades, during which she sold an estimated 100 million records worldwide. She received three Grammy nominations, an MBE for services to music in 2023, and numerous other awards. Her album "Faster Than the Speed of Night" debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, and "Total Eclipse of the Heart" became one of the best-selling singles of all time. Despite her long career, she stated in interviews that she never intended to retire, continuing to perform and tour.
Her last public performance was in March. In recent interviews, she mentioned experiencing knee pain, which had necessitated surgical washouts, but otherwise felt she was in good health and enjoying her shows. She also spoke of her enjoyment of Pilates for daily exercise.
Robert Sullivan is also a distant relative of Oscar-winning actress Catherine Zeta-Jones. He is the cousin of Zeta-Jones's father, David James Jones, making him her first-cousin once-removed. Zeta-Jones has publicly acknowledged the familial connection, sharing a video of her family dancing to "Total Eclipse of the Heart."