Markéta Irglová shares tribute to Glen Hansard

In a post shared to social media last night, Markéta Irglová paid tribute to her Once co-star and Swell Season bandmate Glen Hansard – following the tragic news of his death on Wednesday, aged 56.

"My deepest condolences to Glen’s family, his brothers and his beautiful wife and son, you are all in my thoughts and prayers," the caption of her post reads.

"I am so sorry for your tragic loss, my heart goes out to you. May his love always surround you, his spirit guide and protect you, and may his light shine on throughout your days."

She concluded her post quoting Numbers 6:24–26:

"The Lord bless you
and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you
and give you peace."

 

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A post shared by Markéta Irglová (@marketa_irglova)

Markéta and Glen won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2008, for their collaboration on 'Falling Slowly' from the film Once. Made on a relatively modest budget, the film became a global success, grossing $23 million worldwide.

As The Swell Season, the pair released three studio albums. Their latest, Forward, was released last summer, as their first new album in 16 years.

“It felt right to title the record Forward because it’s a reunion of sorts, but we’re not going backwards,” the Czech pianist and singer said at the time of the release. “Both of us have grown and changed; we’re in different places and getting to know each other again as the new people we’ve become.”

Since his death in a road traffic accident on Wednesday morning, tributes to Glen have continued to pour in from across the world – from the likes of Barack Obama, Bruce Springsteen, Bono, President Catherine Connolly, Michael D. Higgins, Dermot Kennedy, Ed Sheeran, Hozier and more.

Watch our full, unedited 2023 interview with The Swell Season for the Virgin Media show Uprising – in which Glen and Markéta discuss the making of Once, their Oscar win, appearing on The Simpsons, Billie Eilish, Bono, their enduring friendship, and more: