Glen Hansard, the Oscar-winning singer of the film Once, was mourned at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin by hundreds of mourners, with Bono, Eddie Vedder and Markéta Irglová among those who performed in his honour.

Hansard died at age 56 in an early morning motorcycle crash in Dublin. His brother, Richie Hansard, delivered the eulogy.

Bono performed a spoken-word version of U2's "Beautiful Day," accompanied by The Edge on guitar. Before the reading, Bono played a voice message from singer Patti Smith (Irish Times). He had reworked the lyrics of the song for the occasion, and U2 later shared the new lines on social media alongside a painting of Hansard by Irish artist Colin Davidson (Billboard). In a separate post on X, Bono described Hansard as "a smiling rascal if you needed him to be... this most musical and..." (Reuters).

Eddie Vedder performed Hansard's "The Song of Good Hope" alongside Irglová, his former bandmate in The Swell Season — the duo whose music powered Once and earned an Academy Award in 2008 for the song "Falling Slowly." Irglová had paid her own tribute the day before the funeral, in a Facebook post on Wednesday, August 5.

The service closed with a cover of Bob Dylan's "Forever Young," featuring Bono, Vedder, The Edge, Liam Ó Maonlaí and a choir of musicians. Hundreds of mourners, including Irish musicians and entertainers, filled the cathedral (AP News).

What stands out from the funeral is the range of artists who turned out. Bono and The Edge, Vedder, Ó Maonlaí of Hothouse Flowers, Irglová, and a voice from Patti Smith — a gathering that crossed generations and genres, all there for a Dublin busker turned Oscar winner who never left the city where he started.

Hansard first came to prominence as a member of The Frames, the Dublin rock band he fronted from 1990. The Swell Season, his collaboration with Irglová, grew out of the music they wrote for Once, the 2007 Irish film in which both starred. He was also known for his decades of busking on Dublin's Grafton Street — a street he returned to long after international recognition.