Glen Hansard dead at 56 following motorbike crash

Glen Hansard, long-running folk singer, one half of The Swell Season, vocalist of The Frames, and star of the award-winning Once, has died in a motorbike crash that took place in Dublin. He was 56. The Irish Independent reports:

Academy Award-winning singer-songwriter Glen Hansard has died overnight in a motorcycle crash in Dublin’s Lucan.

The renowned musician was killed in the single-vehicle crash near Strawberry Beds in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Gardaí and emergency services were alerted to the collision on the R109 Lower Road, between Tinkers Hill and Rugged Lane, at 4.30am.

Gardaí confirmed the man received treatment at the scene of the incident and was pronounced dead a short time later.

Glen’s agency released a statement to media, which reads:

With broken hearts, we announce the passing of Glen Hansard who passed away, in the early hours of this morning, following a road traffic accident in Dublin. Glen’s family is deeply shocked and heartbroken by this tragic loss and respectfully requests privacy at this extremely difficult time. The family is grateful for the support they have received and wishes to thank the emergency services who attended the scene. As this matter remains the subject of an active Garda investigation, no further comment will be made at this time.

Glen is married to Finnish poet Maire Saaritsa and their three-year-old son was born in October 2022. Glen just released the live-in-studio album Don+t Settle – Transmissions West earlier this year.

Rest in peace, Glen. Your many, many contributions to music and culture in general will not be forgotten.