Bonnie Tyler's final studio recording to be released as Christmas single on 13 November

A last recording for the Christmas season

Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler's final studio recording, "Love, Light and Peace", is set for release as a Christmas single on 13 November 2026. The news came from her husband, Robert Sullivan, a former Olympic judo athlete who had been married to her for 50 years. Tyler, born Gaynor Hopkins, died in July 2026 at the age of 75 in a hospital in Portugal, where she lived. Sullivan said the year since her death had been painful and that he still misses her every day. In announcing the release, he said:

“Gaynor never stopped working. She loved singing, she loved her fans, and she poured her whole heart into these songs.”

Her career and last months

Tyler grew up in a council house in Neath and was spotted by talent scout Roger Bell in a Swansea club. She was dubbed "the female Rod Stewart" for her husky voice, and her career stretched across about 50 years and 18 studio albums. She is best known for the 1983 power ballad "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and for "Holding Out for a Hero", a 1984 anthem recorded for the Footloose soundtrack.

Several months before her death, Tyler underwent emergency intestinal surgery and was put into an induced coma to aid her recovery. Once she was out of the coma, a representative said she remained "very unwell and in intensive care". Her team later said her condition was improving but that recovery would be slow, and that her doctors expected a good recovery over time. She died three weeks after that update, and her family said she had "unexpectedly passed away". Her team had linked the death to the illness she was being treated for.

How the song came together

Chrissie Hammond and Terry Britten wrote "Love, Light and Peace". Britten, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame earlier this year, also produced it with David Mackay, and both had worked with Tyler when her career began in the 1970s. Britten played guitar on her 1977 debut, The World Starts Tonight, so the new song marks nearly 50 years since their first collaboration. Sullivan said she used to stop by Mackay's studio between live shows to work on new songs. Her last releases were self-released after her previous record contract expired: Yes I Can on 1 January 2025 and Only Love in March 2026, shortly before she fell ill.

Tributes and what comes next

Sullivan added that he believed she would want the songs heard by the public, and he spoke of his pride in what she left behind:

“I know she would want people to hear them, and I am so proud of everything she left behind.”

In August, fans lined the streets of Swansea for a celebration of life service at Swansea Minster. Tyler's Jubilee Tour across Europe would have had her mid-tour in November, marking 50 years since "Lost in France" entered the UK Singles Chart in 1976. The single arrives on 13 November, and it is the last studio recording by a singer whose best known hits date from the 1980s.