Bonnie Tyler, singer of 'Total Eclipse of the Heart,' dies at 75

Bonnie Tyler, the iconic British singer famed for her distinctive husky voice and the enduring power ballad "Total Eclipse of the Heart," has died at the age of 75. Her family confirmed her unexpected passing in a statement released on Facebook, announcing she died overnight in a Portuguese hospital.

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Bonnie passed away unexpectedly last night in a hospital in Portugal from the illness she was being treated for.

Tyler had been hospitalized in May in Faro, Portugal, where she owned a home, for intestinal surgery. The family's statement indicated she passed away due to the illness for which she was undergoing treatment. The singer had a deep connection to Portugal's Algarve region, where she owned a home and spent significant time, drawn by the climate, beaches, cuisine, and hospitality.

Known for her voluminous hairstyles and glam rock style, Tyler's career spanned decades. Her 1983 hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart" remains one of the most famous love songs globally, surpassing one billion streams on Spotify in early 2026. Despite the song's immense success, Tyler, who was not its author, once remarked that she earned "almost nothing" from it.

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How to imagine for a second that its success would be so huge, and that people who were not yet born would sing it today in karaoke?

Born Gaynor Hopkins in Wales, she began singing in church and left school at 16. After working in a shop, she was discovered by talent scout Roger Bell in 1975. She signed with RCA Records, adopting the name Bonnie Tyler. Her early success included the 1976 single "Lost in France." A subsequent surgery to remove nodules from her vocal cords, followed by insufficient rest, resulted in the raspy voice that became her trademark. Her first major worldwide hit, "It's a Heartache," was released the same year.

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I earned almost nothing from this.