Linda Nolan dies aged 65 with sisters by her side after 20-year breast cancer journey

Linda Nolan, the cherished pop star and television figure, has passed away at age 65 after her brave battle with secondary breast cancer. The entertainer, well-known as a Daily Mirror columnist, died surrounded by her dear sisters, just a short while subsequent to her latest moving contribution to the paper, reports suggest that she spent her last moments in a state of "love and comfort."

In an emotional announcement given to the Mirror, agent Dermot McNamara shared: "It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Linda Nolan, the celebrated Irish pop legend, television personality, Guinness World Record holding West End star, Sunday Times bestselling author and Daily Mirror columnist."

McNamara added: "She passed at around 10:20am at Blackpool Victoria Hospital on the MCEW Ward. The family said the hospital couldn't do enough, they were tireless."

The statement went on to say: "She passed peacefully, with her loving siblings by her bedside, ensuring she was embraced with love and comfort during her final moments. Linda's legacy extends beyond her incredible achievements in music and entertainment. She was a beacon of hope and resilience, sharing her journey to raise awareness and inspire others. Rest in peace, Linda. You will be deeply missed, but never forgotten."

The Nolan family wish to ensure Linda's fans and supporters know that there will be a public memorial to celebrate the life of the much-adored icon. Her death may come as a poignant shock to the fans who have ardently tracked her candid and sincere depiction of living with cancer through her weekly column in the Mirror, reports the Mirror.

Linda Nolan, of The Nolans fame, had expressed to the Mirror just last week that she was feeling more upbeat after a suspected "bout of flu" over Christmas. However, her health took a turn for the worse on Saturday when she was hospitalised with breathing difficulties.

Tragically, Linda was diagnosed with double pneumonia and, due to her ongoing battle with secondary breast cancer that had metastasised to her brain, her condition rapidly worsened. In the early hours of Tuesday, at 3.30am, her sisters Anne, 74, Denise, 72, Maureen, 69, and Coleen, 59, were summoned to her bedside as doctors initiated end-of-life care.

They remained with her, keeping vigil in her last moments. Her agent paid tribute to her illustrious career as a singer, West End star, television personality, charity advocate, author, and as a pivotal figure in The Nolans, who achieved international acclaim selling over 30 million records, performing for President Gerald Ford, and touring with Frank Sinatra.

The statement celebrated her legacy: "As a member of The Nolans, one of the most successful girl groups of all time, Linda achieved global success, touring the world and selling over 30 million records, with hits such as Gotta Pull Myself Together, Attention to Me and the iconic disco classic I'm In The Mood for Dancing. Her distinctive voice and magnetic stage presence brought joy to fans around the world, securing her place as an icon of British and Irish entertainment."

"Linda also dedicated her life to helping others, helping raise over £20million for numerous charities, including Breast Cancer Now, Breast Cancer Ireland and Samaritans, amongst countless others. Her selflessness and tireless commitment to making a difference in the lives of others will forever be a cornerstone of her legacy."

Linda was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005 and received the all-clear in 2011. However, in 2017 - four years after her sister Bernie's death at 52 in 2013 - Linda discovered that the disease had returned when tumours were found in her hip bone and pelvis.

Like Bernie, she was diagnosed with incurable secondary breast cancer but remained determined to make the most of the time she had left. She decided to use her fame and humour to help others going through a similar ordeal, including her sister Anne, who was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2020 just days after Linda was told her cancer had spread to her liver.

The sisters underwent chemotherapy together but while Anne went into remission, Linda's cancer could only ever be slowed down, not cured. In 2023, Linda discovered it had moved to her brain, but she threw herself into charity work - and led the campaign for wonderdrug Enhertu to be made available to all secondary breast cancer sufferers on the NHS.

She also appeared on Celebrity Antiques Road Trip with Status Quo's Francis Rossi. Despite facing memory issues and a bout of illness over the festive period, which she initially thought was flu, Linda remained hopeful in her column last Thursday. She confided in her readers: "The doctors say it's been a bad case of flu. I'd walk a few steps and struggle to catch my breath. My legs were even more wobbly than usual and, although I try not to, I thought of how Bernie was at the end. You think, 'Oh my God, is this it? '" She continued, "It was only on Monday I felt well enough to venture out. It feels like a whole new world out there. There's nothing like the sensation of starting to feel better after an illness. You've forgotten what it feels like to feel normal (well, I say normal? )."

In a touching final remark, she added: "I'm no fan of resolutions but here's one: It'll take more than flu to finish me off."

Before Christmas, Linda experienced fluctuating health and shared her fears that Christmas 2024 might be her last, prompting her to leave her Blackpool residence and move in with her sister Denise and brother-in-law Tom. Speaking to The Mirror in December, she said, "I try to stay positive," and "I'll use jokes and humour as a way to cope, but of course it's scary. And I have my days where I'm terribly down."

With characteristic courage, Linda expressed her Christmas desire: "to keep breathing and see another one".

Yet, she maintained her sense of humour, joking, "We'll eat, drink and sing carols. And I should point out, I won't be cooking. I have cancer, that's my excuse," accompanied by a playful wink.

She resolutely stated: "I thought my 60th birthday would be my last, but I'm still here, five years later. It's easy to sit back and get depressed about it, but I'm still going. My hope for 2025? To not die, obviously. I just want to be here with my family."

In her frank Mirror columns, Linda has been open about her fear of dying. She recounted a conversation with a nurse, writing: "She asked me straight if I'm afraid. And I replied that yes, I am afraid of dying. And sad, too. And she said I could call her anytime, that they're there to talk about anything."

However, after dreaming about her sister Bernie, who passed away in 2013 from breast cancer at the age of 52, Linda's fears began to fade.

"When I was told I had brain cancer and that it was treatable but not curable, I was devastated. But that night I went to bed and dreamed of Bernie all night," she recalled. "We were laughing together. I woke up, went downstairs and told my sister Maureen: 'I'm not scared of dying any more. I've just dreamed about Bernie and she's going to be there – that's amazing'."

Linda has even taken steps to plan her own funeral to make things "easier for people left behind".

Speaking to The Mirror in 2023, she remarked: "I think it's a one-way trip now", and shared that she had chosen her funeral directors. She also expressed her wish for Neil Sedaka's Our Last Song Together to be played at her funeral and humorously noted her desire for a "pink, sparkly coffin".

In August, Coleen Nolan, Linda's sister, told the Mirror that Linda wanted everyone at her funeral to be dressed in black and "weeping and wailing". She humorously added: "Linda will probably have a list of people she doesn't want at her funeral - there are a lot of people Linda doesn't like! " The well-known Nolan sisters have been candid about their family's heartbreak over the years, with four out of the six siblings having faced a cancer diagnosis or scare.

Anne was the first sister to fall ill, diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000. She later received the all-clear, only to be diagnosed again in April 2020 - this time in the opposite breast.

Just days later, Linda was informed that her secondary breast cancer had spread to her liver, leading the sisters to undergo chemotherapy together. "I don't want to die. I love my life so much. I love my daughters, my grandchildren, my friends, all my family. I want to live for as long as I possibly can," Anne confessed to The Sun.

She discovered her second bout of cancer when she found a lump while showering. Thankfully, the star went into remission for the second time and announced she was cancer-free in December of that year.

Bernie Nolan, the second youngest of the Nolan sisters, made a heartbreaking announcement in April 2010 that she had breast cancer. Despite declaring herself cancer-free in October 2010 after a mastectomy, chemotherapy, and Herceptin treatment, she had to confront more devastating news.

In February 2012, Bernie announced she was no longer on cancer medication, but by October that year, her cancer had regrettably returned, spreading to her left breast, brain, lungs, liver, and bones. The beloved singer died at her Surrey home in July the next year, aged just 52.

"Bernie passed away peacefully this morning with all of her family around her," confirmed a statement from the time. Meanwhile, Loose Women's Coleen discovered in 2023 she had skin cancer on her finger.

Talking about the moment of diagnosis, Coleen expressed, "My first instinct, typical me, was to laugh hysterically because I just thought that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard anybody say. I'm sick of cancer. Also, my first instinct was, 'I'm not telling anybody in my family' because this... seems nothing compared to what my sisters have been through."