Neath Port Talbot Council has paid tribute to Bonnie Tyler, marking 15 years since the Skewen singer was granted the Freedom of the Borough at a ceremony at the Princess Royal Theatre.
Mayor Cllr Alan Lockyer and council leader Cllr Steve Hunt said they were “extremely saddened” by her death, describing her journey “from humble beginnings to worldwide stardom” as an inspiration.
“Starting out as Gaynor Hopkins, a talented young lady from Skewen,” their statement began — using the name she was born with, and the one her family knew her by.
The honour, they said, recognised her contribution to music “as well as being a global ambassador for the area”.
“Despite living abroad for many years, Bonnie Tyler always spoke very fondly about her roots and continued to be a cherished and celebrated figure locally,” they added. “Our thoughts are with Gaynor’s family and the millions of Bonnie Tyler fans around the world.”
Tyler died in hospital in Portugal on Wednesday night, aged 75, two months after emergency surgery.
Her local councillor in Skewen, Helen Ceri Clarke, said villagers “have always been really proud of her, and she’s always been really proud of coming from Skewen”.
“She’s always said Skewen, rather than Neath, is where she’s from,” Cllr Clarke said, adding that the older generation in the village still trade stories about her. “75 is no age these days.”
The musician and broadcaster Owen Money, who knew her before she was famous, said he had been in disbelief at the news.
He told the BBC he had known her “since before she was famous, in the late 60s when she was starting out in Swansea” — and that she was “one of those ladies who just loved life”.
“She’s like family really,” he said. “I was up her house last summer and the first thing she did was open a bottle of champagne.”
Swansea Bay Radio’s Siany Martin said she was “absolutely gutted”, calling Tyler “the voice, the hair, the drama, the power ballads — the full Welsh icon energy”.
“Her music was never just background music,” she wrote. “It was the kind you felt in your bones.”
Carolyn Harris, Labour MP for Neath and Swansea East, said Tyler “took her extraordinary talent from South Wales to the world, yet she never lost the warmth, humour and pride in her Welsh roots”.
Swansea Council leader Rob Stewart called her “a truly authentic Swansea person on and off the stage”, adding: “My heart goes out to Bobbie and the family” — the name friends used for her husband, Robert Sullivan, whom she married in 1973.
First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth said Wales had “lost a true icon, whose music brought joy to so many”, while Wales Secretary Jo Stevens called her “the sound of my teenage years”.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer described her as “an iconic figure” whose songs “continue to touch lives, flood dance floors, and fill karaoke booths”.
Catherine Zeta-Jones — a relative by marriage, through Sullivan — wrote: “Our Queen Bonnie… you were such a part of my life. Sleep tight beautiful lady.”
Wales Air Ambulance, which she supported for years, said her last visit to its Llanelli headquarters came earlier this year. “She brought joy every time she joined us,” the charity said.
In 2013 Swansea University made her an honorary fellow. She said then that she remained “as passionate as ever about Wales and Swansea”, adding: “I still live in Mumbles, just a stone’s throw from the University.”
She had been due to play Utilita Arena Cardiff in December — a homecoming show. The venue said she would “forever be a vital part of the Welsh music landscape”.
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