SINEAD O’Connor fans were stunned to discover a memorial outside her old house has vanished.
The shrine in Bray, Co Wicklow, became the focus of worldwide mourning after the singer was found dead in London aged 56 in July.
Around 6,000 people gathered on Bray’s seafront to see Sinead’s coffin pass by her former home ahead of her private funeral.
Cards, letters, and stones with personal messages written on them were among the tributes sent from around the world, with the items placed outside her old gaff, Montebello.
However in recent days the shrine has disappeared, along with a pink chair similar to one Sinead used to sit on.
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One fan posted: “Where have all our mementoes gone? What harm were the tributes doing?”
But those who removed the tributes told The Irish Sun they are being kept safe, in the hope of being featured in a permanent tribute in Bray.
Neighbours said that with the shrine gone, fans are struggling to identify Sinead’s former home.
One said: “I couldn’t believe how quickly it disappeared. I thought it would take a long time but it was literally cleared overnight.
“I did hear from someone who saw it happening, that it was lovingly done. In a gentle way.
“Maybe there is a feeling that everyone who wanted to come and pay their condolences to Sinead, has been here and it’s now time for people to move on.”
Thousands of Sinead fans around the world are planning to travel to Bray around July 26, 2024, on the anniversary of her passing.
One said online: “I’m bringing a special tribute for Sinead with me. I’ll now put it somewhere else.”
Owners of the house, who bought it off Sinead in 2021, want to turn it into flats.
Some locals are up in arms over the proposal which they say will see their homes overlooked by a new block of luxury flats.
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PLANNING REFUSED
Wicklow County Council refused permission for the pretty seafront house - called Montebello - to be refurbished and turned into apartments in April.
Planners said the building would be an “incongruous structure” and would “intrude on views of protected structures in the vicinity of the site” as well as devaluing neighbouring homes.
But now the applicant has gone to appeal to try and overturn the decision, which they claim “is not justified.”
They expect the An Bord Pleanala decision this month.
Nothing Compares 2 U singer Sinead bought the house in the coastal town of Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland, in 2007 for just under £1.5m.
She sold it in 2021 for around £892,000 and had moved back to London, where she died in Brixton in July.
