Clannad

Harpist and singer Moya Brennan and her brothers Pól and Ciarán first started performing together as Clannad in the Donegal village pub, Leo's Tavern, run by their father, an accordion player and singer who had previously fronted a popular showband and toured around Ireland and Scotland. They became a big attraction in the pub joining their uncles Noel and Padraig Duggan playing a mix of traditional Irish music tinged with jazz arrangements and pop. They began to make their mark on the 1970s folk scene, finally breaking into the mainstream when their mystical theme music for Harry's Game, a dramatic TV series about the troubles in Northern Ireland, became a hit single - the first Irish-language song to do so in the UK. Refining the mystical, spiritual style, the siblings not only became international stars - achieving further hits with the theme music for the TV series Robin of Sherwood - they created the template for many others imitating the new age approach which came to define the new Celtic music; with younger Brennan sister Enya going on to massive solo success after a brief spell with the band. In 1985 Clannad had another big hit with "In a Lifetime", on which Moya Brennan duetted with Bono, and in 1987 adopted a rock approach with ninth album Sirius, recorded in LA, including a duet with Bruce Hornsby on "Something to Believe In". Despite Pól Brennan's departure in 1990, Clannad continued to enjoy widespread success with thematic albums about Irish history and other topics through the 1990s before taking a break while Moya Brennan pursued a solo career and her uncles began performing as The Duggans. They reunited in 2007 and released their 16th studio album with Pól Brennan, Nádúr, in 2013. The band remained active until a farewell concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 30 October 2024. In February 2026, Clannad briefly reunited to perform at the Hot Press magazine anniversary celebration. On 13 April 2026, Moya Brennan died at the age of 73.