Sinead O’Connor’s exact cause of death confirmed one year after passing

Friday marked the one-year anniversary of her passing.

The Nothing Compares 2 U singer died in her home in Herne Hill, London, on 26 July 2023, sixteen months after her 17-year-old son Shane took his own life.

Now, the death certificate for the Dublin-born musician, which was registered by her ex-husband John Reynolds in London, listed that her passing was caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma.

According to the Belfast Telegraph, the 56-year-old was also suffering from a respiratory tract infection, which contributed to her death.

In January, a spokesman for Southwark Coroner’s Court in London announced that O’Connor had died “of natural causes” and that the coroner had “therefore ceased their involvement in her death.”

In the immediate aftermath of her death last July, her family issued a statement to RTÉ reading: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad.

“Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”

The acclaimed, and multi-award winning singer released 10 studio albums over the course of her music career.

Her debut album The Lion and The Cobra was released in 1987 and her second album, I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got sold more than seven million copies across the world.

Her song Nothing Compares 2 U, which was written for her by Prince, was named the number one world single by the Billboard Music Awards, in 1990.

Often outspoken on the topics of religion, equality and immigration, O’Connor made frequent appearances, over the years, on The Late Late Show in Ireland.

She was feted by worldwide music stars and collaborated with the likes of U2, Shane MacGowan and Massive Attack.

In a 2007 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Sinead O’Connor spoke of how she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had coped with that, her whole life. She also admitted to attempting suicide on her 33rd birthday.

Famously outspoken on religion, O’Connor once told Channel 4: “Genuinely I don’t mean disrespect to Catholic people because I believe in Jesus Christ, I believe in the Holy Spirit, all of those, but I also believe in all of them, I don’t think it cares if you call it Fred or Daisy, you know? Religion is a smokescreen, it has everybody talking to the wall.”

Many described Sinead as fearless, outspoken and brave.

She was originally heavily criticised for calling out the Roman Catholic Church for their abuse of children and, arguably, sacrificed her career by ripping up a photo of the Pope during a 1992 appearance on the popular US variety show SNL.

This caused great controversy at the time, but she was proved right many years later when the Catholic Church child abuse scandal finally came to light.

Sinead O’Connor has died today.
She was fearless, outspoken, brave.
She was famous for calling out the roman Catholic Church for abuse of children and then ripping a photo of the pope at the time. This caused controversy at the time but she was right.
RIP #SineadOConnor pic.twitter.com/NE5uSSYC8p

— Rob Walker (@llamedos77) July 26, 2023